^ 


,  i.  . 


.t^  'rfe '  > 


f*     SE.".::S1922      * 


THEOPNEUSTYiV^^  ^^  ^^^'^^ 


OR,    THE 


:*     SEP  .^8  1922 


PLENARY    INSPir/¥M'#^ 


OF 


THE    HOLY   SCRIPTURES. 

/ 

BY    S.    R.   L.    GAUSSEN, 

PROPESSOU  OP  THEOLOGY   IN   GENEVA,    SWITZERLAND. 


TRANSLATED   BY 

1EDWARD    N  ORRIS    KIRK 


rniRD    AMERICAN    FROM    THK    SECOND    FRENCH    EDITION, 
ENLARGED  AND  IMPROVED  BY  THE  AUTHOR. 


NEW  YORK: 
PUBLISHED  BY  JOHN  S.  TAYLOR  &  CO. 

BRICK  CHURCH  CHAPEL,  145  NASSAU  STREET. 
1845. 


Enteukd,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1843, 

By   JOHN   S.    TAYLOR   &   CO., 

In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States 

for  the  Southern  District  of  New  York. 


i>^ 


,(^ 


ITEREOTYPED     BY     T.    B.      SMIT] 
74  FULTON-STHEET,  NEW  YORK. 


TABLE    OF    CONTENTS. 


Pages 

lfirnoriv<'tiOf!s  BY  THE  Translator 5 

Prepack  fc?  ihe  Author.      ......  21 

CHAPTER  I 

Definition  of  Theofneusty 33 

CHAPTER  n. 

Objections  Examined. 49 

Section  I. — Individuality  of  the  sacred  writers,  deeply 

impressed  on  their  books.  ......  49 

Section  II. — The  Translations 74 

Section  III. — The  employment  of  the  Septuagint.         .  80 

Section  IV. — The  Variations. 85 

Section  V. — Errors  of  reasoning  or  of  doctrine.      .         ,  -18 
Section  VI.— Errors  in  the  narrations  ;  contradictions  in 

the  facts. 128 

Section  VII. — Errors  contrary  to  the  Philosophy  of  Na- 
ture   170 

Section  VIII. — The  very  acknowledgment  of  St.  Paul.  .  ^00 

CH.APTER  III. 

Examination  of  the  Evasions 204 

Skction  I. — Could  Inspiration  regard  the  thoughts,  with- 
out extending  also  to  the  language  1         .         .         .  204 

Section  II. — Should  the  historical  books   be   excluded 

from  the  inspired  portions  of  the  Bible  7     .         .         .         216 

Section  III. — Would  the  apparent  insigniiicance  of  cer- 
tain details  of  the  Bible,  justify  us  in  separating  them 
from  the  inspired  portion.  .....        236 


IV  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

Pages 

Of  thk  use  of  Sacred  Criticism,  in  its  relations  to 

TlIKOPNEUSTY. 257 

Section  I. —  Sacred  Criticism  a  scholar  not  ajudge.        .         258 

Section  II, — Sacred  Criticism  is  a  historian,  and  not  a 

conjurA-.ff  265 

Section  III. — Sacred  Criticism  not  the  God,  but  the  door- 
keeper of  the  temple. 272 

^    CHAPTER  V. 

Didactic  Summary  of  the  doctrine  of  Theopneusty.  287 

Section  I.— Retrospect. 288 

Section  II. — Short  Catechetical  Essay  on  the  principal 

points  of  the  doctrine 294 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Scriptural  proof  op  the  Theopneusty.  .  .  .  345 
Section  I. — All  Scripture  is  Theopneustic.  .  .  .  345 
Section  II. — All  the  words  of  the  Prophets  are  given  by 

God 346 

Section  III. — All  the  Scriptures  of  the  Old  Testament 

are  Prophetic.  355 

Section  IV. — All  the  Scriptures  of  the  New  Testament 

are  Prophetical.  ........         361 

Section  V. — The  examples  of  the  Apostles  and  of  their 

Master  attest,  that  they  regard  all  the  words  of  the 

holy  books  as  given  by  God 379 

CHAPTER  VII. 
Conclusion. 399 


INTRODUCTION 


TO  THE  FIRST  AMERICAN  EDITION. 


Thb  Spirit  of  God  has  breathed  afresh  upon  the  Cliurches  of 
the  Old  World  ;  and  the  piinciple  of  life  is  manifesting  itself  in  a 
two-fold  antagonism  to  the  ancient  superstition  and  the  modem 
scepticism  of  Continental  Europe.  The  new  theological  school  in 
Geneva,  founded  in  1831,  is  an  effect  and  an  instrument  of  that 
renovation.  Its  existence  was  indispensable  to  the  awakened 
churches  of  Switzerland  ;  for,  the  city,  church,  and  school  of  Cal- 
vin had  abandoned  the  vital  principles  and  facts  of  Calvin's  reli* 
gion.  < 

Mr.  S.  R.  L.  Gaussen,  our  author,  is  Professor  of  Theology  in 
this  Evangelical  Institution.  He  is  an  accomplished  scholar,  and 
an  able  writer  ;  and  we  hail  the  productions  of  his  pen,  (several  of 
which  are  appearing  at  this  moment,  in  an  English  dress,)  and 
those  of  his  esteemed  colleague,  Mr.  Merle  D'Auhignc,  as  the  pro- 
mise to  France,  that  she  shall  yet  recover  all,  and  even  more  than 
she  lost  by  the  vandalism,  that  burned  her  Protestant  citizens  and 
her  Protestant  literature  at  the  same  stake. 

Of  the  style  of  this  work,  we  merely  deem  it  necessary  to  say, 
that  it  possesses  a  degree  of  vivacity,  simplicity,  and  richness, 
which  are  but  imperft-ctly  represented  in  the  translation.  Of  its 
contents,  we  would  make  some  few  remarks,  by  which  the  reader 
may  be  better  prepared  to  approach  the  subject,  and  meet  the 
author  as  he  desires  to  be  met.  He  does  not  propo.se  to  convince 
the  sceptic ;  and  yet  there  is  much  here,  on  which  the  doubter 
may  prcfitablj  reflect.  His  great  oltject  is.  to  take  the  Church  off 
from  her  present,  unsafe,  indefensible  and  enfeebling  position,  of  a 
naixed,  varying  and  indeterminate  inspiration. 

He  has  assumed  a  bold  position,  which  has  to  us  many  of  the 
1* 


VI  INTRODUCTION. 

essential  signs  of  truth  ;  simplicity,  precision,  consistency  with  it- 
self and  with  the  declarations  of  the  Bible,  and  power  to  establish 
the  mind  in  firm  assurance.  It  is  simple ;  and  in  this,  is  con- 
trasted with  that  strange,  confused,  inapplicable  theory,  so  preva- 
lent in  the  church,  which  considers  some  divine,  and  others  hu- 
man ; — which  however,  gives  us  no  sure  guide,  when  we  would  fly 
from  the  words  of  man  to  the  pure  word  of  God.  Our  author's 
position  is  precise — for  it  docs  not  vacillate  in  a  misty  indcfinite- 
ness  between  an  inspiration  of  the  men  and  of  their  writings,  as 
does  the  opposite  theory.  It  comes  directly  to  the  book  as  an  ex- 
istence, as  a  thing,  and  says  of  it,  this  is  inspired,  all  inspired,  all 
equally  so,  all  infallible.  It  is  consistent  with  itself,  for  it  asserts 
that  the  whole  Bible  is  infallible  and  perfect ;  and  then  forbids  hu- 
man reason  to  pronounce  any  passage  of  the  Bible  unworthy  of 
the  Spirit  of  God.  It  is  consistent  with  the  Bible  ;  for  it  admits 
and  asserts  that  all  that  is  written,  (all  Scripture)  is  given  by  in- 
spiration of  God.  It  is  confirming  ;  for  he  who  believes  this  doc- 
trine, takes  up  his  Bible,  saying,  this  is  all  true,  all  important,  all 
worthy  of  God  ;  not  one  jot  or  tittle  of  it  can  fail. 

Again  and  again,  have  we  asked,  in  reading  this  book,  what  do 
our  learned  writers  on  Inspiration  propose  to  themselves,  by  adopt- 
ing the  subtile  distinctions  borrowed  from  Jewish  Rabbins "? 
There  is,  we  admit,  an  intrinsic  difficulty  or  mystery  in  the  whole 
subject  of  Inspiration.  But  it  respects  only  the  mode  of  the  Spirit's 
influencing  the  minds  of  the  writers.  And  if  this  Jewish  theory 
of  Inspiration  had  been  adopted,  merely  in  explanation  of  the  psy- 
chology of  the  case — to  inform  us  how  the  writers  were  affected 
in  the  composition  of  different  parts  of  the  sacred  oracles,  we  should 
consider  it  to  be  as  harmless  and  useless  as  a  thousand  other  the- 
ories. But  when  it  invades  the  text  itself,  and  undertakes  to  clas- 
sify tlie  passages  of  the  Bible,  as  partaking  more  or  less  of  human 
infirmity,  ignorance  or  sinfulness,  then  tve  feel  ourselves  con- 
strained to  differ  and  to  remonstrate.  It  may  be  replied,  no ;  we 
simply  propose  to  guard  against  exaggeration,  and  to  prevent  the 
exposure  of  the  doctrine  of  Inspiration  to  contempt ;  we  find  pas- 
sages manifestly  above  the  reach  of  human  faculties,  even  for  their 
comprehension,  much  more  for  their  composition;  we  find  others 
again  mere  recitals  of  trivial  incidents,  expressions  of  ordinary  feel- 
ings, such  as  may  be  seen  in  a  school-boy's  letter  to  his  friends; 
and  we  cannot  believe  that  the  Spirit  of  God  equally  dictated  all 


INTEODUCTION.  VU 

ihesc  passages.  Still,  we  reply  with  the  author,  if  you  merely  un- 
dertake to  speculate  upon  the  state  of  the  minds  of  the  writers, 
confine  your  speculations  there — but  suffer  us  to  return,  and  tell 
the  pi^ople  to  rely  on  the  fact,  that  every  word  of  the  original  text 
is,  in  its  {)lace,  an  inspired  word — that  God  placed  it  there,  as  a 
portion  of  an  infallible  revelation. 

A  great  excellence  of  this  work,  is  the  clearness  of  its  distinction 
between  the  inspiration  of  the  men,  and  that  of  the  book.  We  be- 
lieve, indeed,  and  its  author  believes,  that  the  writers  were  in- 
spired ;  that  "  holy  men  of  God,  were  moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost," 
when  they  spake.  But  the  fact  of  their  inspiration  is  one  thing, 
that  of  the  book  is  another.  And  the  perusal  of  this  work  has  in- 
creased our  conviction,  that  a  semi-intidelity  on  a  vital  point,  has 
crept  into  the  Church ;  that  the  sense  of  the  imperfection  of  the 
writers  has  imperceptibly  diminished  her  reverence  for  the  Scrip- 
tures. 

There  is  a  formidable  objection  to  the  theory  of  Insj)iration,  to 
which  our  author  has  not  replied.  His  reason  for  not  doing  so,  is, 
that  he  writes  for  believers,  and  not  for  sceptics.  Yet,  we  fear, 
that  many  a  devout  student  of  the  Bible,  and  many  a  sincere 
preacher  of  its  truths,  might  discover  lurking  in  his  heart,  this 
subtle  objection  ;  Avhich,  like  the  unobserved  ''  worm  i'  the  bud," 
is  sometimes  hinderinof  a  vigorous  grov/th,  and  sometimes  corrodiny 
vital  organs.  The  objection  may  be  thus  stated : — God's  works 
are  all  perfect  in  one  sense,  and  all  his  teachings  are  infallible. 
But  the  instant  he  employs  man  to  teach  his  teachings  to  otl^er 
men,  there  is  introduced  a  new  element,  which  at  once  destroys 
perfection  and  infallibility.  This  arises  from  two  sources,  the  ini- 
perfection  of  man,  and  that  of  his  language.  If  the  conceptions 
or  feelings  of  a  man  are  employed,  they  must  necessarily  limit  and 
mar  the  divine  thought  communicated  to  him.  And  if  man  speak-s 
to  his  fellows,  in  human  language,  he  must  use  an  imperfect  me- 
dium, ahvays  more  or  less  imperfectly  comprehended. 

This  is  the  most  subtile  and  imposing  of  all  the  objections  which 
have  attacked  our  faith  in  plenary  inspiration.  Our  ground  of  de- 
fence is  here ;  that  God  calls  his  word  perfect ;  he  declares  that  a 
particle  of  it  shall  never  fail,  that  no  future  changes,  no  progress 
of  science,  no  unfolding  of  the  complicated  drama  of  human  life 
shall  ever  change  or  modify  one  shade  of  its  statements.  This 
may  not  satisfy  the  unbeliever  ;  yet  even  he  may  find  a  relief  from 


VIU  INTRODUCTION. 

his  own  dark  and  chilling  speculations,  in  the  fact,  that  God's  in- 
struments are  perfect  for  his  purposes,  however  unadaptcd  to  ours 
Nature  is  an  infallible  teacher,  none  can  deny  ;  or,  in  other  words 
all  God's  works  are  perfect  instructers.  And  this  remains  true 
although  men  are  constantly  prone  to  misinterpret  their  meaning 
It  remains  true,  although  men's  senses  are  imperfect  instruments 
for  the  reception  of  truth,  and  material  substances  are  imperfeci 
media  for  conveying  a  knowledge  of  spiritual  truth.  "  The  invisi- 
ble (spiritual)  things  of  him  are  clearly  seen,  being  understood  by 
the  things  (material  as  well  as  immaterial.)  that  are  made." 

It  is  enough  then  for  us  to  believe,  that  he  who  has  made  na- 
ture a  perfect  teacher,  has  made  his  word  so,  liliewise.  And  all 
we  oppose,  is,  the  confounding  one  twig,  one  leaf,  one  fibre  of  this 
wonderful  production  of  divine  goodness,  w^ith  any  thing  man  has 
made  and  marred.  If  a  doubt  still  remains  in  the  objector's  mind, 
because  we  have  not  produced  an  analogy  on  the  main  point,  the 
essential  imperfection  of  the  language ;  consider,  that  you  would 
have  no  such  difficulty,  if  God  were  to  speak  to  'you  by  audible 
words  in  your  own  language.  The  words  then  and  thus  spoken, 
although  they  had  separately  come  down  to  you  from  your  rude 
Saxon  ancestors,  and  although  they  are  now  variously  and  imper- 
fectly used  by  men,  would  never  be  forgotten  by  you,  never  con- 
founded with  even  the  holiest  words  of  the  holiest  uninspired  men. 
This  is  the  precise  impression  which  we  desire  to  see  the  Bible  pro- 
duce in  all  our  hearts.     When  our  eye  rests  on  its  page,  when  its 

"  *ds  fall  on  our  ear,  let  us  receive  it  as  the  very  voice  of  God. 
te  whole  scope  of  our  book  is  to  secure  that  effect.     And  both 
su^Uct  and 4he  view  of  it  here  presented  will  compensate  the 

levout  and  the  inquiring  reader  for  the  time  and  pains  of  an  atten- 
tive perusal.  Here  is  the  rock  of  the  Christian's  faith— an  inspired 
communication,  an  infdlible  revelalion.  Here  is  the  life  and  power 
of  the  Christian  ministry — they  have  a  voice  of  God  to  echo,  an 
infallible  "  thus  saith  the  Lord,"  to  form  the  soul  of  their  oratory 
and  the  power  of  their  appeals.  We  could  wish  that  the  subject 
of  inspiration  might  receive  a  more  earnest  attention,  in  the  educa- 
tion of  our  youth,  and  especially  of  our  candidates  for  the  holy 
ministry.  There  is  still  too  much  dependence  on  mere  authority, 
in  training  the  mind.  A  consequence  of  vvhich  is,  that  subtile  er- 
rorists,  by  seeming  to  ap{K!al  to  reason,  can  mislead  such  of  our 
young  men,  as  have  nothing  but  the  ipse  dixit  of  teachers,  to  op- 


INTRODUCTION.  IX 

pose  to  argument.  To  this  mode  of  instructing  is  opposed  that  of 
exhibiting  the  reasons  which  have  convinced  us  that  the  Bible  is 
inspired.  Let  us  deal  fairly  with  the  youthful  mind,  by  taking  it 
to  points  of  observation,  whence  it  can  sec  the  beautiful,  unques- 
tionable signs  and  seals  of  a  divine  origin  in  the  Bible.  The  best 
and  strongest  of  these  are  indeed  invisible  to  "  the  natural  man." 
But  there  are  others  ;  and  they  are  sufficient  to  establish  the  con- 
lidence,  even  of  them  who  "  discern  not  the  things  of  the  Spirit." 
Let  a  part  of  the  instruction  of  the  common-school,  the  Sunday- 
school,  the  Bible-class,  the  college  and  the  pulpit,  be — the  inspira- 
tion of  the  "  hving  oracles  ;"  let  it  be  repeated,  until  the  evidence 
of  it  is  clear  and  brilliant  to  the  mental  eye.  We  do  not  overrate 
the  importance  of  this  point.  The  effects  of  a  more  earnest  and  a 
more  general  inculcation  of  this  great  fact,  must  soon  become  ap- 
parent, in  many  ways  ;  from  such  tilling,  under  the  gentle  dews 
and  quickening  breath  of  the  Spirit,  would  spring  the  most  beauti- 
ful and  fragrant  flowers,  the  richest  and  most  refreshing  fruits. 
There  would  be  too,  the  nipping  of  many  a  poisonous  germ  of  error 
in  its  first  budding.  Some  of  the  most  reckless  and  blasphemous 
revilers  of  the  word  and  doctrines  of  God,  were  once  under  chris- 
tian culture.  How  comes  it  that  they  can  now  give  themselves  to 
the  constant  contradiction  of  the  plain  statements  of  that  word,  to 
the  bold  and  damnable  contempt  of  the  theology  and  the  logic  of 
the  Bible'?  Surely  their  eyes  have  never  seen  in  that  book,  even 
that  which  the  "reason  unbaptized"  may  see,  of  the  presence  and 
authority  of  him  who  spake  from  the  smoking  summit  of  Sinai, 
amid  terrible  glories.  Much  then  may  be  done,  to  prevent  this 
fatal  scepticism,  by  a  more  full  and  faithful  exhibition  to  those  un- 
der our  instruction,  of  the  great  and  glorious  fact  of  inspiration, 
and  of  the  evidence  of  its  reality.  Much  too  may  be  done  to  press, 
back  the  sweepmg  current  of  scepticism,  by  a  faithful  exhibition 
)f  this  whole  subject,  including  the  incompetence  of  man  to  pre- 
judge a  Revelation,  to  dispense  with  a  Revelation,  or  to  provide  a 
substitute  for  the  Bible.  There  has  constantly  been  on  the  one 
hand,  an  exalting  of  human  reason  to  a  position  where  it  promises 
to  relieve  us  from  the  sense  of  helplessness ;  and  on  the  other 
hand,  there  has  been  an  equally  dangerous  tendency  to  exalf 
merely  human  writings  to  a  level  with  the  Scriptures.  To  meet 
these  two  extremes,  of  having  no  revelation  and  too  much  revela- 
tion, our  doctrine  nmst  be  clearly,  earnestly  presented  to  the  pub- 


X  INTRODUCTION. 

lie  mind.  On  this  point  a  great  battle  is  yet  to  be  fought.  And 
then,  when  the  battle  waxes  hot,  and  the  enemy  presses  our  en- 
trenchments closely,  we  shall  not  be  surprised  to  find  the  whole 
out-works  of  a  varied  inspiration  carried  away.  We  see  not  how 
Rome  is  to  be  attacked  in  her  fortress  of  traditions,  and  apocryphal 
books,  if  a  part  of  our  very  Bible  is  made  up  of  Paul's  and  Peter's 
uninspired  sayings.  You  call  them  indeed,  superintended  sayings. 
But  you  mean,  in  the  very  adoption  of  that  term,  to  express  that 
the  Holy  Spirit  did  not  give  these  passages  to  the  apostles,  any 
more  than  he  gave  the  book  of  Tobit  to  its  author ;  that  he  left 
them  to  say  in  their  own  way,  wliat  they  knew  before,  and  what 
it  did  not  become  the  Holy  Spirit  to  impart  to  them.  If  you  do 
not  mean  this,  you  then  come  to  our  author's  ground  ;  for  he  be- 
lieves fully  in  the  free  exercise  of  every  faculty  of  the  sacred 
writers,  just  where  you  do,  and  as  far  as  you  do.  He  merely  goes 
a  step  farther,  and  says,  God  designed  that  they  should  say  just 
what  they  did  say :  and  he  secured  their  saying  it  in  their  own 
way,  but  exactly  as  it  should  be,  even  to  an  iota  and  a  tittle.  This 
is  a  plenary  inspiration.  And  the  book  so  wiittcn,  is  the  word  of 
God,  and  binds  the  conscience  of  the  world ;  and  nothing  else 
does  so  bind  it,  even  though  it  were  the  writings  of  Paul  or  Peter. 
This  ground  must  be  taken  firmly  with  the  apostate  church. 

And  with  the  infidel,  whether  he  be  christian  in  name,  or  anti- 
christian,  the  sharp  sword  of  a  perfect  inspiration  will  be  found,  at 
last,  indispensable.  If  he  can  enter  the  armory,  and  take  away  a 
single  weapon,  he  may  take  all ;  nay,  if  the  ground  is  conceded  to 
him,  that  there  is  a  single  passage  in  the  Bible  that  is  not  divine, 
then  we  are  disarmed  ;  for  he  will  be  sure  to  apply  his  privilege  to 
the  very  passages  which  most  fully  oppose  his  pride,  passion,  and 
error.  How  is  the  conscience  of  a  wicked  race  to  be  bound  down 
by  a  chain,  one  link  of  which  is  weak  1  How  are  you  going  to 
press  on  human  belief,  the  unwelcome  doctrines  of  Native  and 
Total  Depravity,  of  the  Trinity,  of  Expiation  by  the  Blood  of 
Christ,  of  Eternal  punishment,  of  Demons,  of  Election,  of  gratui- 
tous Justification,  by  a  Bible  wiiich  admits  of  human  imperfections 
in  its  composition  '?  How  are  3'ou  going  to  check  the  audacity 
that  accuses  Paul  of  fulse  logic,  when  you  accuse  him  of  writing 
sometliing  which  is  not  as  perfect  as  it  would  have  been,  had  God 
himself  written  it  1  You  have  entered  the  sacred  temple,  and  com- 
menced the  work  of  desecration,  in  your  reverential  and  devout 


INTRODUCTION.  XI 

way  ;  and  how  can  you  censure  him  that  enters  and  imitates  your 
cxam|)le,  after  his  own  fashion,  and  not  after  yours  ]  You  say, 
when  Panl  reqiipstei'  Timothy  to  hring  his  cloak,  he  was  not  speak- 
ing as  fully  under  t^he  Spirit,  as  when  he  jvophosied  of  future 
events,  or  revealed  the  doctrine  of  justification  by  faith.  With  pre- 
cisely as  good  authority,  the  other  says,  when  Paul  wrote  the 
whole  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  he  was  left  to  hunstlf 

To  this  doctrine  v/e  look  for  new  influences  to  affect  even  the 
ministers  of  the  gospi-l.  We  may  have  inferred  too  much  from  the 
adoption  of  the  popular  theory  of  inspiration.  But  we  must  be- 
lieve, that  the  difference  is  immense,  Ktween  a  faith  that  knows 
not  precisely  what  parts  of  its  Bible  are  given  of  God,  without  an 
imperfection  ;  and  that  which  plants  its  trusting  footstep,  every 
where  in  the  Bible,  upon  the  rock  of  a  divine  declaration,  which 
cannot  fail.  We  presume  that  there  is  indeed,  in  the  case  of  many 
pious  ministers  of  the  gospel,  an  in,consistency  between  their  theory 
and  their  general  belief  in  this  matter.  They  accept  the  entire 
Bible  as  a  revelation  from  God,  com|)letely  expressive  of  what  he 
desires  that  man  should  be  taught,  with  the  exception,  that  he  has 
not  made  it  all  equally  divine.  And  as  he  has  given  no  certain 
marks  by  which  we  may  distinguish  such  pa.ssages,  these  men 
would,  if  consistent  with  themselves,  feel  a  distrust  of  the  whole 
Bible.  They  often,  however,  avoid  this  paralyzing  doubt,  by  hav- 
ing settled  in  their  own  mind,  that  certain  passages  are  fully  in- 
spired, and  by  venturing  to  determine  which  those  passages  are. 
But  otliers,  who  adopt  the  theory  of  a  fourfold  inspiration,  must 
feel  a  want  of  implicit  resting  on  any  one  passage;  as  would  all, 
if  they  were  consistent  with  their  theory.  Muoh  of  the  power  of 
preaching  depends  on  the  degree  of  confidence  felt  by  the  ambas- 
sador of  Christ  in  the  perfect  truth  and  the  divine  authority  of 
every  thing  he  has  learned  from  the  Bible,  and  of  every  thing  he 
quotes  from  the  Bible,  in  the  sense  and  connection  in  which  the 
word  of  God  presents  it.  If  a  preacher  depends  for  his  theological 
sentiments,  more  U[)on  huinan  arguments  than  upon  inspired  de- 
clarations, it  will  be  a  leaven  affecting  Al  his  ministrations.  Faith 
comes  by  heanng:  but  whatever  faith  he  imparts,  will  be  a  faith 
in  argument,  but  not  in  divine  testimony.  And  we  apprehend 
moreover,  that  some  of  the  strongest,  the  sweetest,  the  most  mo- 
mentous t»uths  of  tiie  Bible  are  but  faintly  and  rarely  exliibited  by 
some  good  men,  from  the  want  of  a  deep  impression  that  every 


Xll  INTRODUCTION. 

thing  in  the  Bible  is  inspired.  It  both  prevents  their  searching 
into  those  deep  sayings,  whose  meaning  is  never  found,  without 
prayer  and  earnest  study,  and  yet  which  most  powerfully  beat 
down  the  unbelief  of  the  heart ;  it  likewise  prevents  the  earnest, 
cordial  and  frequent  utterance  of  those  awful,  stern  and  overwhelm- 
ing views  of  the  justice  of  God,  an(i  of  the  evil  nature  and  conse- 
quences of  sin,  which  are  the  sword  of  the  Spirit  for  the  destruc- 
tion of  pride,  self- righteousness,  and  contempt  of  the  cross. 

The  progress  of  piety  likewise,  is  intimately  connected  with  the 
fulness,  clearness  and  firmness  of  faith  in  the  inspiration  of  the 
Scriptures.  We  believe  with  devout  thankfulness,  that  the  un- 
learned children  of  God  have  never  gone  so  far  as  to  determine, 
with  their  teachers,  which  passages  God  gave  the  apostle,  and 
which  he  had  without  Divine  aid.  They  believe  in  verbal  inspi- 
ration, without  knowing  that  there  is  any  other  kind.  Such,  how- 
ever, as  carry  to  their  Bible-readings  this  confused  impression  of 
many  kinds  of  inspiration  must  have  an  unobserved  and  unre- 
proved  vein  of  unbelief  affecting  all  theii  communion  with  the  liv- 
ing oracles.  When  the  Christian  retires  to  his  private  oratory,  he 
seeks  the  presence  of  God,  and  of  God  alone.  He  does  not  want 
even  Paul  there.  There  may  be  seasons,  we  admit,  when  holy 
men  can  greatly  aid  our  private  devotions ;  but  there  are  others, 
when  their  presence  would  be  an  intrusion.  And  unless  the 
Christian  has  such  hours,  in  which  he  is  strictly  alone  with  God, 
he  will  not  cultivate  the  divine  life  with  much  success.  But  in 
those  holiest  hours,  he  may,  he  must  take  the  Bible  ;  not  however 
as  the  book  of  Moses,  of  Daniel,  of  Isaiah  or  of  Paul,  but  as  the 
book  of  God.  In  every  line,  in  every  word,  he  must  see  only  his 
Father,  hear  only  his  Saviour.  And  he  should  desire  no  niore  to 
think  of  Paul  and  David,  any  faither  than  their  various  circum- 
stances and  feelings  are  employed  by  God  for  illustrating  truth, 
than  of  the  man  Avho  printed,  bound  and  sold  the  volume. 

But  we  must  ask  the  reader's  forgiveness  for  this  long  detention 
from  the  author,  to  whom,  and  to  whose  work,  it  is  our  privilege 
now  to  introduce  him. 

We  intrude  still,  merely  to  say  that  the  term  Theopneusty  and 
its  derivatives,  are  retained  by  us,  because  the  author  has  chosen 
it,  because  there  is  more  reason  for  having  a  word  of  Greek,  than 
one  of  Latin  origin,  to  express  a  doctrine  of  the  New  Testament; 


INTRODUCTION.  XUl 

and  because  we  have  supposed  that  the  word,  Inspiration,  conveys 
to  every  classical  scholar  something  of  the  pagan  notion  ;  and  we 
prefer  to  have  a  Scriptural  term,  with  which  the  true,  pure  doc- 
trine of  the  divine  origin  of  the  entire  Bible  may  be  associated. 

E.  N.  K. 
^fEW  York,  March  15,  1842. 


INTRODUCTION 

TO  THE  SECOND  AMERICAN  EDITION, 


TnR  general  decision  of  the  press  is  in  favor  of  thi^  work.  But 
a  few  writers  have  dissented  from  the  general  verdict  of  critics, 
and  expressed  greater  or  less  opposition  to  it  and  its  doctrine.  And 
we  dccai  it  desirable  to  consider  here,  such  of  their  objections  as 
the  work  itself,  with  all  the  additions  the  author  has  made  in  his 
second  edition,  does  not  meet.  They  find  objections  to  the  doc- 
trine and  to  the  book.  The  former  are  all  summed  up  in  the  re- 
marks of  one  writer — "Read  'Coleridge's  Confessions,'  in  which 
he  shivers  to  atoms  the  system  supported  by  this  writer.  Pray 
read  Coleridge  and  re-read  him."  We  have  done  so,  and  the  result 
is :  a  regard  for  him  as  the  fairest  writer  on  that  side,  a  profound 
admiration  of  his  eloquence  and  earnest  faith,  but  an  utter  convic- 
tion of  the  illogical  character  of  this  brilliant  production.  Our 
anrdysis  of  his  work  presents  the  following  results.  He  commen- 
ces with  the  question,  whether  an  inquirer,  and  especially  a  scep- 
tical one,  should  be  met  with  the  dogma  that  the  whole  Bible  is 
infallible  ?  This  (jucstion  gives  much  strength  to  his  arguments, 
and  yet  more  to  his  appeals.  But  this  is  not  a  fair  statement  of  the 
question  which  is  now  before  ns,  and  into  which  he  insensibly 
glides.  We  ask,  is  it  true'?  It  is  quite  another  question — how 
early  a  religious  enquirer  is  in  a  state  to  investigate  that  point. 
And  taking  some  of  his  touching  appeals  for  our  model  we  might 
make  as  many,  if  not  as  elToctive,  in  reference  to  the  danger  of 
sending  men  with  '•  the  natural  mind,"  which  God  declares,  "dis- 
cerneth  not  the  things  of  the  spirit,"  to  measure,  and  test,  and 
canonize,  and  criticise  the  revelations  of  Heaven.  We  must  main- 
tain, after  all  his  eloquence,  that  there  can  be  no  such  thing  as  an 
authoritative  revelation  of  a  statute  from  heaven,  if  every  znan  is 


INTRODUCTION.  XV 

to  judge  of  the  degree  of  truth  in  any  passage  of  that  revelation  by 
its  supposed  suital>leness  to  his  spiritual  wants.  It  is  like  sending 
a  statute-book  of  a  kingdom  into  the  cells  of  a  prison  to  get  a  de- 
cision upon  the  wisdom  and  excellence  of  its  criaiinal  laws.  Or, 
if  this  comparison  appears  too  harsh,  it  is  like  sending  the  pre- 
scriptions of  a  skilful  physician  to  the  bed-side  of  tiie  patient,  to 
ascertain  their  excellence.  If  there  is  any  point  to  which  God  has 
testified  before  man,  it  is  to  man's  spiritual  blindness,  obliquity, 
obstinacy,  and  obtuseness.  Now  if  that  be  true,  ?tlr.  C«;leridge's 
test  must  fall  to  the  ground  in  two  ways  :  first,  because  man's  self- 
complacency  will  induce  him  to  think  all  such  declarations  unin- 
spired, and  secondly,  because  it  shows  that  man's  perception  and 
emotion  is  not  an  infillil^lc  criterion  of  spiritual  trutli.  The 
Bible  declares  that  "  the  carnal  mind  is  enmity  against  God."  And 
yet  this  carnal  mind  needs  an  exhibition  of  that  God  to  whom  it 
is  opposed.  How  much  of  his  character  will  be  likely  to  commend 
Itself  to  him  1  The  Bible  declares  that  the  cross  is  foolishness  to 
the  Greek,  and  yet  the  Greek  of  that  and  of  every  age  needs  to  be- 
lieve before  he  sees  with  his  own  eyes,  that  that  cross  is  the  wisdom 
and  power  of  God  unto  salvation.  Mr.  Coleridge  deceived  him- 
self; he  took  it  for  granted  that  all  men  would  feel  aright,  as  he 
may  have  felt  about  every  essential  doctrine  of  the  Scriptures; 
and  yet  he  knew  enough  of  man,  of  history,  and  of  the  reception 
given  to  our  Lord  and  his  preaching,  to  have  led  him  to  a  different 
conclusion. 

He  staggers  greatly  at  the  incompatibility  of  plenary  inspiration 
with  the  individuahty  of  the  writers.  But  this  our  author  has  fully 
disposed  of 

Another  of  his  grand  objections  is  thus  forcibly  stated.  A  be- 
liever in  plt'nary  inspiration  being  asked  his  opinion  "concerning 
the  transcen<lent  blessedness  of  Jael,  and  the  righteousness  of  the 
act.  in  which  she  inhospitably,  treacherously,  perfidiously,  murder- 
ed sleep,  the  confiding  sleep,  closed  the  controversy  by  observing 
that  he  wanted  no  better  morality  than  that  of  the  Bible,  and  no 
other  proof  of  an  action's  being  p^j-aise-worthy  than  that  the  Bible 
had  declared  it  worthy  to  be  praised ;  an  observation  as  applied 
in  tliis  instance,  so  slanderous  to  the  morality  and  moral  spirit  of 
the  Bible  as  to  be  inexplicable,  except  as  a  consequence  of  the 
doctrine  in  dispute.  But  let  a  man  be  once  fully  persuaded  that 
there  is  no  diiference  between  the  two  positions — •  the  Bible  con- 


XVI  INTRODUCTION. 

tains  the  religion  revealed  by  God,'  and  '  whatever  is  contained  in 
the  Bible  is  religion,  and  was  revealed  by  God,'  and  1  no  loncrer 
wonder  at  these  paradoxes."  This  anecdote  and  this  form  of  the 
question  will  enable  us  to  show  how  easily  this  great  man  could 
misapprehend  the  point  of  dispute.  Had  any  one  maintained  that 
"  every  thing  contained  in  the  Bible  is  religion,"  he  well  deserved 
all  the  castigation  here  bestowed  upon  hirn.  But  we  have  not  yet 
heard  of  that  pcrsoji ;  nor  have  we  found  him  who  would  say  in 
direct  terms  that  if  God  secured  the  infallible  record  of  the  lan- 
guage in  which  Satan  tempted  Christ  or  Eve,  then  that  language 
is  holy  and  is  a  part  of  religion.  Our  doctrine  is,  that  if  the  Bible 
says  that  Satan  did  say  so,  then  he  did  say  so.  Of  the  same 
character  is  his  misapprehension  of  the  doctrine  in  its  relations  to 
the  book  of  Job.  We  quote  him — "  Say  that  the  book  of  Job 
throughout  was  dictated  by  an  infallible  intelligence.  Then  re- 
peruse  the  book,  and  still,  as  you  proceed,  try  to  apply  the  tenet : 
try  if  you  can  even  attach  any  sense  or  semblance  of  meaning  to  the 
speeches  which  you  are  reading.  What !  were  the  hollow  truisms, 
the  unsufficing  half-truths,  the  false  assumptions  and  malignant 
insinuations  of  the  supercilious  bigots,  who  corruptly  defended  the 
truth :  were  the  impressive  facts,  the  piercing  outcries,  the  pathetic 
appeals,  and  the  close  and  powerful  reasoning  which  the  poor  suf- 
ferer— smarting  at  once  from  his  wounds,  and  from  the  oil  of  vitriol 
which  the  orthodox  liars  for  God  were  dropping  into  them — impa- 
tiently, but  uprightly  and  holily,  controverted  this  truth,  while  in 
will  and  spirit  he  clung  to  it :  were  both  dictated  by  an  infallible 
intelligence]  Alas!  if  I  may  judge  from  the  manner  in  which 
both  indiscriminately  are  recited,  quoted,  appealed  to,  preached 
upon,  by  the  roiUiniers  of  desk  and  pulpit,  I  cannot  doubt  that  they 
think  so,  or  rather  without  thinking,  take  for  granted  that  so  they 
are  to  think :  the  more  readily,  perhaps,  because  the  so  thinking 
supersedes  the  necessity  of  all  after-thought." 

Now  this  is  all  very  fine,  and  it  expresses  just  what  hundreds 
who  deny  our  doctrine  will  thank  him  for  saying.  But  before  it 
is  used  as  a  sword  or  shield,  let  us  sec  exactly  v:hat  it  strikes,  and 
v:hat  it  defends.  It  strikes  with  a  death-blow  the  proposition — 
"  all  that  is  in  the  Bible  is  religion."  But  this  we  call  a  Quixotte's 
windmill.  It  is  no  real  giant,  excepting  in  the  fancy  of  some 
sucli  champion  for  partial  inspiration.  What  then  does  it  defend  1 
The  proposition,  that  the  Bible  contains  some  sayings  of  wicked 


INTRODUCTION.  XVll 

men  which  in  themselves  are  as  wicked  as  the  men  who  uttered 
them.  Hut  all  this  is  forei'j;n  to  the  cise  in  hand.  We  believe 
that  in  writing  the  Scriptures,  holy  men  were  employed  to  write 
just  what  God  would  have  written,  and  as  he  wouUl  have  it  writ- 
ten. If  it  seemed  to  infinite  wisdom  d(siial)Ic  that  Jael's  conduct 
should  be  rccord.'d,  and  that  idl  the  unwise  and  unicind  sjx'cches 
of  .lob's  friends,  and  all  the  lying  sug;^cstioMs  of  Salan  to  our  Lord 
should  be  so  infallibly  reported  to  us  that  we  might  be  pertictly 
sure  we  possess  them,  we  see  not  that  this  implies  that  the  Holy 
Spirit  recommends  these  sp;n'ches  and  suggestions.  We  maintain 
that  where  the  Scriptures  give  a  histor}',  they  are  an  infallible  re- 
cord ;  and  where  they  teach  theology  or  morality,  they  are  a  per- 
fect and  unmixed  {lattern  of  truth  and  holiness.  It  may  then  be 
asked,  "  Since  this  position  admits  that  we  cannot  regard  every 
saying  in  the  Bible  as  infallible  as  a  saying,  while  it  may  be  a 
perfect  record  of  a  saying,  of  what  use  is  infallibility  to  us  practi- 
cally ;  how  are  we  to  dis^criminate  between  what  is  said  as  abso- 
lute truth,  and  what  is  said  as  a  true  report  of  what  in  itself  is  not 
true  1"  I  reply ;  that  is  requiring  us  to  give  a  sy.stem  of  Herrae- 
neutics.  There  are  laws  for  the  interpretation  of  all  language ; 
and  to  these  laws  inspired  language  is  as  subject  as  any  other. 

We  have  dwelt  thus  long  on  Mr.  Coleridge's  Confessions,  be- 
cause in  that  work  we  have  found  the  strongest  statement  of  the 
objections  which  our  autiior  has  not  noticed.  But  even  this  very 
work  admits,  that  the  authority  which  must  determine  the  ques- 
tion, is  "  the  declarations  of  the  Book  itself."*  And  on  that  auti'or- 
ity  alone  does  our  author  lean,  and  on  that  rock  we  think  he  has 
established  the  doctrine  of  a  plenary  inspiration. 

H;is  he  done  so  1  This  brings  us  to  the  second  class  of  criti- 
cisms— objections  to  the  work. 

1.  T/'ie  anUufr  is  accvscd  of  reasojiivg  in  a  circle ;  of  Jlrsf  as- 
suming the  iiifidrLiiidy  of  the  book,  and  then  prGvingils  iiifuUibillly 
from  i's'.lf.  This  is  not  a  correct  statement.  He  does  nut  assume 
against  an  opponent  that  the  Bible  is  infallible,  but  agrees  with 
him  tliat  the  Book  is  authentic.  His  antagonist  is  not  a  Deist, 
but  theoretically  at  least,  a  Christian,  wlio  s.nys  with  Mr.  Cole- 
ridge, we  must  ascertain  frotn  the  book  vvhctlier  the  doctrine  be 
true.  This  may  disappoint  the  inquiring  sceptic  ;  but  he  cannot 
blame  the  author,  who  states  his  object  and  the  ])Ian  of  his  work 
*  Confessions  of  an  Inquirine  Spirit.     London :  ISIO.    P.  15. 

2* 


XVHl  INTRODUCTION. 

with  great  distinctness.  Surely  if  these  critics  liad  read  the  forty- 
first,  forty-second,  and  forty-third  answers  of  his  Catechism,  they 
would  not  have  made  this  charge. 

2.  The  author  is  accused  of  rtnfairncss,  in  givivg  lo  limited  texts 
an  unlimited  meaning.     The  specifications  are  the  following  : — 

"  On  'p.  39  of  the  first  edition^  p.  45.  of  this,  the  author  says — 
*  these  assej-tio?is,  tlce  words  of  ihs  Lord  are  pure  icords,  they  are 
perfect,  go  to  sheio  the  inspiration  of  the  whole  Bille.^  Nou)  wc 
know  that  these  passages  in  the  12/A  and  Idih  Psalms  were  penned 
before  half  the  Old  Testameivt  was  written.  On  p.  52  of  the  first 
edition,  p.  58.  of  this,  he  says — '  Now  licar  the  Bible  itscf.  It  pro- 
tests that  all  Scripture  is  given  by  inspiration  by  God.''  Bid  this 
can  refer  only  to  the  Old  Testament.  Paris  of  the  New  Testament 
were  not  then  written — and  none  of  it  was  then  referred  to  as  forming 
part  of  the  Scriptures.  Besides  ichich,  the  expression  is  ambiguous 
even  in  the  original,  and  the  ancient  versions  and  fathers  dificr  re- 
specting its  meaning.  Hie  writer  is  either  disingenuous  or  igno- 
rant. The  word  is  is  not  in  the  original.  The  verse  then  reads,  AU 
Scripture  given,  <^c." 

These  two  quotations  are  complete  specimens,  and  our  answer 
to  them  involves  our  answer  to  all  the  others.  Our  author,  before 
coming  to  his  proof,  in  defining  terms  and  in  meeting  objections, 
has  occasion  to  explain  what  he  understands  by  plenary  inspira- 
tion. And  in  doing  so  he  necessarily  quotes  the  language  of  the 
Scriptures,  for  they  contain  all  the  definition  and  all  the  proof.  It 
must  be  remembered  tl^.at  he  firmly  believes  that  plenary  inspira- 
tion is  the  doctrine  of  the  Bible ;  that  he  believes  that  whatever 
they  say  of  the  purity  and  the  infallibleness  of  one  part,  they  mean 
equally  to  apply  to  the  whole.  He  regards,  and  believes  he  has 
reason  to  regard,  each  one  of  them  as  describing  the  generic  na- 
ture of  that  inspiration  which  belongs  alike  to  every  passage  of  the 
Bible.  Whether  he  proves  it  is  a  subsequent  question.  But  just 
now  we  are  concerned  with  the  propriety  of  his  speaking  of  the 
meaning  of  the  Bible  as  he  understands  it,  where  he  is  defining 
a  doctrine  of  the  Bible.  We  think  these  gentlemen,  in  making 
their  animadversions,  have  denied  him  the  privilege  ever  accorded 
in  debate,  to  employ  what  terms  the  disputant  pleases  in  defining, 
to  state  what  he  believes  before  he  proves  it,  in  order  that  he  may 
prove  it. 

And  certainly  the  charge  of  unfairness  or  ignorance,  as  made 


INTRODUCTION.  Xlx 

in  the  second  specification,  would  all  have  been  removed,  had  the 
critic  read  the  book  through  at  least  as  far  as  to  the  argument,  and 
especially  to  the  first  page  of  the  Sixth  Chapter,  or  even  to  the 
27th  question  of  the  Catechism,  in  the  fifth  Chapter. 

But  we  are  told  ; 

3.  That  his  proof  is  drfccHve.  It  is  said  :  "  Mr.  Gnusscn's  rea- 
soning  must  be  characterized  as  singularly  loose,  rambling,  incon- 
clusive and  sophistical."  But  may  not  this  charge  against  him  be 
"  loose,"  and  the  evidence  to  support  it  "inconclusive  and  sophis- 
tical '?"  There  is  happily  in  all  questions  of  logic  a  sure  and  easy 
test ;  the  syllogism.  Let  us  apply  it  to  Mr.  Gaussen's  argument, 
which  may  be  thus  stated. 

Whatever  the  Scriptures  declare,  is  true.  The  Scriptures  de- 
clare that  they  are  plenarily  inspired.     Therefore,  &c. 

Now  there  are  some  cases  in  which  the  major  proposition  re- 
quires proof  Here  it  does  not ;  for  he  reasons  with  no  person 
who  denies  or  doubts  it.  His  proof  then  is  necessarily  bestowed 
upon  the  minor  propo.sition.  His  arguments  are  the  following  : — 
Whatever  the  Bible  calls  Scripture,  is  theopncustic  or  inspired. 
"  AH  Scripture  is  given  by  inspiration  of  God."  Now,  what  con- 
stitutes the  canon  is  totally  an  independent  question.  Whatever 
it  is,  that  is  theopneustic.  He  shews  that  it  is  not  the  thought  or 
substance,  but  it  is  the  (ypacpf)  writing  that  is  inspired.  And  it 
is  not  a  part  of  the  (ypxbfi)  writing,  but  (tT(ti;,)  the  whole. 
Now  let  any  one  agree  with  the  author  that  all  the  hooks  of  our 
Bible  are  canonical,  and  constitute  the  Scriptures  (and  he  reasons 
with  no  others),  to  them  his  argument  appears  to  us  conclusive. 
But  he  leaves  it  not  to  this  one  declaration.  He  passes  on  to  an 
extended  course  of  reasoning,  the  purport  of  which  is: — That  a 
prophet  is  in  the  Bible,  one  who  speaks  the  word  of  God,  whether 
it  be  concerning  the  past,  present  or  future.  The  limitation  of  the 
term  to  one  who  predicts,  is  by  no  means  scriptural.  This  should 
answer  the  question  of  one  of  the  critics — "  Is  Ruth  a  prophetic 
book  1"  If  written  by  an  inspired  man,  it  is  so,  in  the  Bible-sense 
of  that  term.  He  then  proceeds  to  shew  that  the  Old  Testament 
and  the  New  Testament  are  entirely  prophetical  in  this  sense,  and 
therefore  inspired.  He  then  closes  (he  argument  by  shewing  how 
Christ  and  his  A[)nstles  regarded  the  Old  Testament.  And  he 
might  safely  rest  all  his  argument  on  that  point,  both  because  it  is 
so  manifest  that  they  believed  in  a  verbal  inspiration,  and  be- 


XX  INTRODUCTION. 

cause  the  main  objections  to  inspiration  are  found  in  the  Old  Tes- 
tament. 

After  all  the  ordeals  through  which  the  first  edition  of  this  work 
has  passed,  we  feel  only  the  stronger  confidence  in  recommending 
the  second.  It  is  enriched  by  new  contributions  from  the  fertile 
genius  and  exhaustless  stores  of  its  gifted  author ;  and  we  trust 
will  be  found  free  from  the  painful  typographical  errors  in  the  re- 
ferences, which  occurred  through  the  inabiliry  of  the  translator  to 
superintend  the  press  as  minutely  as  figures  require.  The  author 
has  changed  the  order  of  his  chapters ;  but  as  his  reasons  were 
not  ohvious  to  us,  we  have  prefeiTed  continuing  the  arrangement 
of  the  first  edition.  The  rapid  sale  of  this  work  assures  us  that  the 
need  of  it  is  felt.  In  these  days  of  overturning  and  innovation, 
men  want  a  rock  for  their  anchor-hold.  We  believe  their  God  has 
furnished  it. 


PREFACE. 


The  very  first  sight  of  this  book  and  its  title  may  occasion  two 
equally  unfounded  prejudices  in  certain  minds.  I  desire  to  remove 
them. 

The  Greek  word  Theopnnisly,  although  derived  from  a  word 
used  by  St  Paul,  and  itself  for  a  long  time  used  by  the  Germans, 
is  yet  unknown  in  our  tongue.  Many  a  reader  may  therefore  say, 
that  the  subject  here  treated,  is  too  scientific  to  be  popular,  and  too 
little  popular  to  be  useful.  And  yet  1  unhesitatingly  declare,  that 
if  any  thing  has  inspired  me  with  both  the  desire  and  the  courage 
to  undertake  this  work,  it  is  the  two-fold  conviction  of  its  vital  im- 
portance and  its  simplicity. 

I  do  not  think,  that  after  the  admission  of  the  divinity  of  Chris- 
tianity, a  question  can  be  stated,  which  is  more  essential  to  the 
life  of  our  fiith,  than  this ;  Is  the  Bible  from  God  1  is  it  entirely 
from  God  1  or  is  it  true,  (as  some  assert,}  that  it  contains  sentences 
which  are  purely  human,  inaccurate  narratives,  vulgar  errors,  il- 
logical reasonings;  in  a  word,  that  it  contains  books,  or  portions  of 
books,  in  which  our  faith  has  no  interest,  being  marred  by  error 
and  the  natural  indiscretions  of  the  writers  1 — a  question  decisive, 
fundamental ;  yea  vital !  It  is  the  first  that  meets  you  on  opening 
the  Scriptures ;  and  with  it  your  religion  ought  to  commence. 

If  it  be  true,  as  you  say,  that  some  things  in  the  Bible  are  un- 
important, have  nothing  to  do  with  your  faith,  and  no  relation  to 
Jesus  Christ ;  and  if  it  be  true,  again,  that  nothing  in  this  book  is 
inspired,  but  that  whicli  you  may  happen  to  think  possessed  of 
importance,  related  to  faith  and  to  Jesus  Christ,  tlien  your  Bible 
is  a  totally  different  book  from  that  of  the  Fathers,  of  the  Reform- 
ers, and  of  the  saints  in  every  age.  Your  Bible  is  fallible:  theirs 
was  infallible.  Yours  has  chapters,  or  portions  of  chapters,  sen- 
tences or  phrases,  which  must  be  totally  distinguished  from  those 
that  are  of  God  ;  theirs  was  "  all  given  by  inspiration  of  God,  and 


XXU  TREFACE. 

all  of  it  profitable  for  doctrine,  for  reproof,  for  correction,  for  in- 
struction in  rigliteousness ;  that  the  man  of  God  may  be  perfect." 
The  very  sanie  passage  may  then  be,  in  your  estimation,  as  far 
from  that  which  it  was  in  theirs,  as  earth  is  from  heaven. 

You  have  opened  for  instance,  at  the  forty-fiflh  Psalm,  or  at  the 
Song  of  Solomon.  Whilst  you  see  nothing  there,  but  that  v.hich 
is  the  most  thoroughly  human,  a  long  marriage-song,  or  the  amor- 
ous conversations  between  a  young  woman  of  Sharon  and  her 
young  husband  ;  they  were  there  accustomed  to  see  t!ie  glories  of 
the  Church,  the  bonds  of  Jehovah's  love,  the  depths  of  grace  in 
Christ ;  in  a  word,  that  which  is  most  divine  in  heavenly  things ; 
and  if  they  could  not  read  them  there,  they  knew  that  thoy  aro 
there,  and  there  they  searched  for  them. 

Or,  we  take  an  epistle  of  St.  Paul.  Whilst  one  of  us  attributes 
a  sentence  which  he  does  not  understand,  or  which  shocks  his 
carnal  sense,  to  the  Jewish  prejudices  of  the  writer,  to  intentions 
entirely  vulgar,  to  circumstances  altogether  human  ;  the  other  there 
searches  with  profoundest  respect,  the  meaning  of  the  Spirit ;  he 
believes  it  to  be  perfect,  before  discovering  what  it  is  ;  and  he  at- 
tributes its  apparent  insignificance  or  obscurity  only  to  his  own 
unskilfulness  and  ignorance. 

Thus,  while  in  the  Bible  of  the  one,  everything  has  its  design, 
its  place,  its  beauty,  its  use;  just  as,  in  a  tree,  tlie  branches  and 
the  leaves,  the  vessels  and  the  fibres,  the  epidermis,  and  even  the 
bark,  all  have  their  uses  ;  the  Bible  of  the  other  is  a  tree,  having 
many  leaves  and  branches,  and  fibres  which  God  did  not  create, 
and  wliich,  therefore,  do  not  accomplish  his  designs. 

But  this  is  not  all.  Not  only  shall  you  and  we  have  two  differ- 
ent bibles,  but  we  shall  be  at  an  utter  loss  to  tell  what  yours  is. 
It  is  only,  to  a  certain  degree,  human  and  fallible,  you  say  ;  but 
who  shall  define  this  degree  1  If  it  be  true  that  man,  by  putting 
his  hand  to  this  work,  has  left  upon  it  the  impression  of  his  own 
imperfection;  who  shall  determine  the  extent  ofthat  imperfection,  and 
the  places  which  it  mars  1  It  has  its  human  part,  you  say  ;  Imt  what 
arc  the  limits  of  this  part ;  who  shall  fix  them  for  me  1  No  one. 
Everv  one  must  do  it  for  himself,  according  to  the  dictates  of  his 
own  judgment;  that  is,  this  falUble  part  of  the  Bible  will  be  mag- 
nified to  us,  just  in  proportion  as  we  are  less  enlightened  by  God's 
light;  so  that  a  man  must  be  deprived  of  the  word  of  God,  just 
in  proportion  as  he  has  need  of  it ;  as  we  see  idolaters  making 


PREFACE.  XXIU 

idols,  whose  impurity  increases  with  their  own  distance  from  the 
living  and  holy  God  !  Thus,  then,  every  one  will  reduce  the  in- 
spired Scriptures  within  different  limits;  and  making  to  himself  of 
the  Bible,  so  expurgated  by  himself,  an  infallible  rule,  will  say  to 
it — Henceforth  guiile  me,  for  thou  art  my  rule  !  as  that  image-ma- 
ker of  whom  Isaiah  speaks ;  "  who  maketh  a  god,  and  saith,  de- 
liver me,  for  thou  art  my  God." 

But  this  is  not  all ;  consequences  still  more  serious  are  here  in- 
volved. According  to  your  answer,  it  is  not  the  Bible  alone  which 
is  changed  ;  it  is  you  ! 

Yes,  even  in  the  presence  of  passages  which  you  may  have  ad- 
mired most,  you  shall  have  neither  the  attitude  nor  the  heart  of  a 
believer  !  How  can  it  be  otherwise  after  that  you  have  arraigned 
these  very  passages  with  all  the  rest  of  the  Bible,  at  the  tribunal 
of  your  judgment,  that  they  may  there  be  pronounced  by  you, 
divine,  not  divine,  or  partially  divine  1  What  can  be  the  authority 
of  a  passage  over  you,  which  is  infallible  only  so  far  as  you  please 
to  consider  it  so  ?  Has  it  not  once  stood  on  trial  at  your  bar,  on 
the  same  footing  with  passages,  convicted  of  being  merely  human 
in  whole  or  in  part  1  And  can  your  spirit  then  assume  sincerely, 
the  humble  and  submissive  attitude  of  a  learner,  before  the  very 
passage  which  you  have  just  examined  in  the  character  of  a  judge"? 
Impossible;  you  may  perhaps  render  it  the  obedience  of  acquies- 
cence, but  never  that  of  faith  ;  of  approbation,  never  that  of  adora- 
tion !  You  believe  in  the  divinity  of  a  passage,  you  say  ;  but  it  is 
not  in  God  that  you  believe,  it  is  in  yourself!  This  passage  pleases 
you,  it  does  not  govern  you  ;  it  excites  your  admiration,  but  does 
not  reign  over  you  ;  it  is  before  you  as  a  lamp,  it  is  not  in  you  as 
an  unciion  from  on  high,  a  principle  of  light,  a  fountain  of  life.  I 
cannot  persuade  myself  that  any  pope,  however  conscious  of  his 
sacerdotal  power,  ever  prayed  with  great  confidence  to  a  saint  whom 
by  his  own  plenary  authority,  he  had  raised  to  the  rank  of  a  demi- 
god by  canonizing  him.  How  then,  can  any  reader  of  the  Bible, 
(however  conscious  of  his  own  superior  wisdom^)  act  the  pirt  of 
a  genuine  believer  toward  a  passage  which  he  has  just  canonized"? 
Will  his  spirit  come  down  from  the  pontificial  chair,  to  prostrate 
itself  before  this  passage,  which  but  for  his  decision,  had  remained 
human,  or  at  least,  doubtful  1  How  can  he  study  any  longer  a 
passage  which  he  mu.-5t  already  have  examined  thoroughly  in  or- 
der to  have  assigned  it  its  true  position  ;  how  can  he  fully  submit 


XXIV  PREFACE. 

to  an  authority  which  he  might  have  tlonied,  and  which  he  has 
already  made  dubious  1  We  can  but  imperfectly  adore  that  which 
\vc  have  degraded. 

jMorcover,  let  it  be  remarked,  that  as  the  entire  divinity  of  such 
or  such  a  passage  of  the  Scriptures  is  dependent  in  your  estimation, 
not  on  the  fact  of  its  being  found  in  the  book  of  the  oracles  of 
God,  but  on  the  fact  that  it  presents  to  your  wisdom  and  your 
spirituality  certain  signs  of  spirituality  and  wisdom  ;  the  sentence 
which  you  pronounce,  can  never  be  so  unhesitating  as  that  you 
can  totally  separate  from  it  every  doubt  which  at  first  attended  it. 
Your  faith  must  then  partake  of  your  doubts,  and  must  itself  be 
imperfect,  undecided,  conditional !  And  as  the  decision,  so  will  be 
the  faith ;  as  the  faith,  such  the  life  !  But  that  is  not  the  faith, 
that  is  not  the  life  of  God's  elect ! 

The  consideration,  however,  which  manifests  most  strongly  the 
importance  of  the  subject  we  are  about  to  discuss,  is,  that  if  the 
system  w^e  oppose  have  its  roots  steeped  in  incredulity,  it  must  in- 
evitably bear  the  fruit  of  yet  a  new  incredulity.  How  happens  it, 
that  so  many  thousands  can  open  their  Bible,  day  and  night,  with- 
out ever  discovering  the  doctrines  which  it  teaches  with  the  ut- 
most explicitness  1  Whence  comes  it  that  thoy  walk  in  darkness 
so  many  years,  with  the  sun  shining  before  them  1  Do  they  not 
regard  these  books  as  a  revelation  from  God  1  Yes  ; — but,  preju-- 
diced^by  false  notions  of  inspiration,  and  believing  that  there  still 
exists  in  the  Scriptures  a  mixture  of  error ;  and  at  the  same  time 
desirous  of  finding  those  parts  which  are  sufficiently  reasonable  to 
be  esteemed  divine,  they  study,  unconsciously  I  admit,  to  give 
them  a  sense  acceptable  to  their  own  wisdom  ;  and  thus  they  not 
only  make  it  impossible  to  discover  what  God  would  teach,  but 
also  make  the  Scriptures  contemptible  in  their  own  eyes.  They 
take  up,  for  instance,  the  writings  of  St.  Paul,  in  order  to  find  in 
them  justification  by  the  law,  man's  native  innocence,  his  tendency 
toward  the  good,  the  moral  omnipotence  of  his  will,  the  merit  of 
his  works.  And  what  is  the  consequence  1  It  is  alas  !  that  after 
having  forced  such  doctrines  upon  the  sacred  waiter,  they  find  the 
language  so  totally  unndapted  to  its  supposed  end,  terms  so  badly 
chosen  to  express  the  meaning  they  have  determined  to  find  there, 
reasonings  so  badly  conducted  ;  they  at  last  come  to  lose,  in  .';pite 
of  themselves,  what  little  respect  they  had  for  the  Scriptures,  and 
then  they  plunge  into  rationalism.    Thus  it  is,  that  having  com- 


PREFACE.  XXV 

menced  in  incredulity,  the  fruit  of  thrir  labor  is  a  more  advanced 
incrt'dulity  ;  they  have  darkness  as  the  consequence  of  darkness, 
and  so  fulfil  tliat  dreadful  word  of  Christ;  "  from  him  that  hath 
not,  shall  be  taken  away  that  which  he  hath." 

Such  then,  is  manifestly  the  fundamental  importance  of  the 
great  question  we  are  about  to  examine.  By  your  answer,  the 
arm  of  the  word  of  God  is  enervated  for  you,  the  sword  of  ihe^. 
Spirit  is  blunted,  it  has  lost  its  temper  and  its  penetrating  power.** 
How  can  it  thenceforward  "  pierce  even  to  the  dividing  asunder 
of  the  joints  and  the  marrow,  and  separate  the  soul  and  the  spirit '?" 
How  can  it  be  mightier  than  your  lusts,  than  your  doubts,  than 
the  world,  than  Satan  1  How  can  it  give  you  light,  force,  victory, 
peace  1  No !  it  might  be  by  an  operation  of  the  mere  grace  of 
God,  that  in  spite  of  this  deplorable  state  of  the  soul,  a  divine  word 
should  come  and  seize  it  suddenly ;  then  Zaccheus  would  come 
down  from  his  sycamore,  Matthew  quit  his  receipt  of  custom,  the 
paralytic  take  up  his  bed  and  walk,  and  the  dead  revive.  All  that 
is,  doubtless,  possible.  But  it  still  remains  true,  that  this  disposi- 
tion which  judges  the  Scriptures,  and  which  doubts  in  advance, 
their  universal  inspiration,  is  one  of  the  greatest  obstacles  we  can 
oppose  to  their  legitimate  action.  "  The  word  preached,"  says  St. 
Paul,  "  did  not  profit  them,  not  being  mixed  with  faith  in  them 
that  heard  it ;"  while  the  most  abundant  benedictions  of  the  same 
Scriptures  were  ever  the  portion  of  those  who  "  received  it,  not  as 
the  word  of  men,  but,  (as  it  is  in  truth,)  the  word  of  God,  which 
effectually  worketh  in  them  that  believe."* 

This  question  is,  then,  evidently  vital  to  our  faith  ;  and  we  have 
the  right  to  say,  that  between  the  two  answers  made  to  it,  there 
exists  the  same  gulf  that  f  irmerly  would  have  separated  two  Jews 
who  might  have  seen  Jesus  Christ  in  the  flesh,  and  who  might 
equally  have  recognized  him  as  a  prophet ;  but  of  whom,  the  one, 
in  view  of  his  carpenter's  dress,  his  homely  fare,  his  hands  hard- 
ened by  work,  and  his  rustic  attendants,  believed  him  fallible  and 
peccable,  like  any  other  prophet :  whilst  the  other  recognized  in 
him  Emanuel,  the  Lamb  of  God,  the  Lord  our  RiLfhleousness,  the 
Holy  One  of  Israel,  the  King  of  kings,  the  Lord  of  lords. 

The  reader  may  not  yet  have  admitted  each  of  these  considera- 
tions ;  but  it  must  certainly  be  conceded,  that  enough  has  been 
said  to  justify  the  conclusion,  that  the  study  of  this  question  is 
•  1  Thess.  ii.  13. 


XXVlll  PREFACE. 

There  was  a  time  when  all  the  sciences  were  mysterious,  teach- 
ing with  closed  doors;  having  their  initiated,  their  holy  language, 
and  tlieir  free-masonry.  Physics,  geometry,  medicine,  grammar, 
history,  all  were  taught  in  Latin.  They  sailed  in  the  clouds,  far 
above  the  vulgar;  and  they  let  fall,  at  the  utmost,  from  their  sub- 
lime bark,  a  few  detached  leaves,  which  men  were  to  take  up  with 
great  respect,  but  which  they  were  not  permitted  to  judge.  Now, 
every  thing  is  changed.  Genius  glories  in  making  itself  under- 
stood by  the  many ;  and  after  having  soared  to  the  ethereal  regions 
of  science,  in  order  there  to  seize  the  truth  in  her  highest  retreats, 
it  employs  its  power  in  ascertaining  the  way  back  to  earth,  and  in 
approaching  closely  to  us,  that  it  may  show  us  the  rout  it  has 
traveled,  and  the  secrets  it  has  discovered.  But,  if  such  is  now 
the  almost  universal  tendency  of  the  human  sciences,  it  was  ever 
the  distinctive  characteristic  of  true  Theology.  She  owes  herself 
to  all.  The  other  sciences  can  dispense  with  the  people,  as  the 
people  dispense  with  them ;  true  Theology,  on  the  contrary,  has 
need  of  the  people,  as  the  people  have  of  her.  She  guards  their 
Religion  ;  and  their  Religion,  in  its  turn,  guards  her.  Wo  to 
them  when  Theology  languishes,  and  does  not  speak  to  them  ! 
Wo  to  her,  when  the  religion  of  the  churches  neglects  her,  and 
ceases  to  esteem  her  !  We  must  then  see  to  it,  both  on  her  account 
and  on  theirs,  that  she  speaks  to  them,  hears  them,  studies  in  re- 
ference to  them,  and  keeps  their  schools  open,  as  our  temples  are. 

Whilst  theology  continues  to  teach  in  the  midst  of  the  churches, 
by  having  constantly  before  her  the  realities  of  the  Christian  life ; 
she  is  also  constantly  reminded  of  the  realities  of  science,  the 
apostacy  of  man,  the  counsels  of  the  Father,  the  cross  of  the  Re- 
deemer, the  consolations  of  the  Spirit,  hohness,  eternity.  Then, 
also,  the  conscience  of  the  Church,  restraining  her  wanderings, 
intimidates  her  boldness,  obliges  her  to  be  serious,  and  corrects  the 
effects  of  that  almost  profane  familiarity,  with  which  the  science 
of  the  schools  lays  her  hand  on  holy  things.  In  speaking  to  her, 
every  day,  of  that  life  which  the  preaching  of  the  Cross  preserves 
in  the  Church,  (that  life,  without  the  knowledge  of  which  all  her 
science  would  be  as  incomplete,  as  would  be  the  natural  history 
of  man,  derived  only  from  the  study  of  carcasses,)  the  religion  of 
the  people  takes  away  from  theolorry  her  too  prompt  admiration  of 
the  sciences  which  do  not  sanctify.  Religion  often  proposes  to 
theology  this  question,  originally  put  by   St.  Paul  to  the  false 


PREFACE.  XXIX 

science  of  the  Galatians;  "Received  ye  the  Spirit  by  the  works 
of  the  law,  or  by  the  hearing  of  faith  V  She  takes  away  the  en- 
chantment of  liuman  wisdom,  she  inspires  theology  with  a  pro- 
found reverence  for  the  word  of  God,  and  (in  this  holy  word)  for 
those  doctrines  of  justification  by  faith,  which  are  the  power  of 
God  our  Saviour,  and  which  ought  to  penetrate  the  very  soul  of 
her  science.  It  is  thus  that  religion  guides  theology  by  teaching 
her  to  associate  in  her  researches,  the  labors  of  the  conscience  and 
affections,  with  those  of  the  understanding,  and  never  to  pursue 
the  truth  of  God,  but  by  the  united  illuminations  of  study  and 
prayer. 

Alii],  on  the  other  side,  theology  renders  in  her  turn,  to  the 
Christian  churches,  services  which  are  to  them  equally  indispen- 
sable. It  is  she  who  watches  over  the  religion  of  a  people,  that 
the  "  lips  of  the  priest  may  preserve  knowledge,  and  that  they  may 
be  able  to  seek  the  law  at  his  mouth."  It  is  she  who  preserves  in 
the  holy  ministry  of  the  gosp^d,  the  purity  of  its  doctrines ;  and  in 
their  preaching,  tlie  exact  balance  of  all  the  truths.  It  is  she  who 
confirms  the  unlearned  against  the  hostile  assertions  of  a  science 
which  they  do  not  understand  ;  it  is  she  wlio  gathers  her  answers 
from  the  very  region  where  the  objections  are  gathered  ;  who  puts 
her  finger  upon  the  sophisms  of  the  adversaries;  who  keeps  them 
respectful  in  her  presence,  and  who  obliges  them  to  observe  before 
the  Church,  a  style  more  guarded  and  less  presumptuous.  It  is 
she,  in  fine,  who  signahzes  the  first  moment,  often  so  decisive, 
when  the  language  of  Religion  among  a  people,  begins  to  be  er- 
roneous ;  and  when  error,  hke  a  germinating  tare,  first  shoots 
above  the  ground.  She  gives  the  timely  warning,  and  they  haste 
to  weed  it  up. 

Always,  when  the  Churches  have  been  pious.  Theology  has 
flourished;  she  has  become  enlightened;  she  has  made  study  hon- 
orable; and,  in  order  to  qualify  herself  for  studying  the  Scriptures 
profoundly,  not  only  has  she  been  willing  to  make  herself  mistress 
of  all  the  sciences  which  could  throw  light, on  the  Bible,  but  she 
has  quickened  all  the  others  into  new  life ;  whether  directly,  by 
the  example  of  her  own  labors,  or  in  bringing  elevated  spirits 
around  her,  or  in  diffusing  through  the  academic  institutions  that 
generous  sentiment  of  high  morality,  so  favorable  to  the  develop- 
ment of  science. 

3* 


XXX  PREFACE. 

Thus  in  elevating  the  character  of  study,  she  has  often  ennobled 
that  of  an  enth'e  people. 

But  on  the  other  hand,  when  theology  and  the  people  have  be- 
come inditforent  to  each  other,  and  the  slumbering  Churches  w^ere 
living  only  for  this  world,  then  theology  herself  has  become  indo- 
lent, frivolous,  ignorant,  or,  perhaps,  a  lover  of  novelties ;  seeking, 
at  any  cost,  a  profane  popularity ;  teaching  for  the  few  ;  pretend- 
ing to  discoveries  which  are  said  only  to  the  ear,  which  are  taught 
only  in  the  academics,  and  suppressed  in  the  temples ;  holding  her 
gates  closed  in  the  midst  of  the  people,  and  at  the  same  time, 
throwing  among  them  from  the  windows,  doubts  and  impieties,  to 
evidence  the  existing  measure  of  her  indifference;  until,  finally, 
she  sinks  into  scandalous  conduct,  either  in  attacking  doctrines, 
in  denying  the  integrity  or  the  insjnration  of  certain  books,  or  in 
audaciously  giving  the  lie  to  the  facts  they  announce. 

And  let  no  one  imagine  that  the  entire  people  do  not  quickly 
feel  so  great  an  evil.  They  suffer  from  it,  even  in  their  temporal 
interests ;  and  their  very  national  existence  is  endangered  by  it. 
In  degrading  the  religion  of  a  people,  you  debase  their  morals,  you 
take  away  their  moral  life.  Every  thing  in  a  nation  may  be  mea- 
sured by  one  standard ;  the  height  of  their  heaven.  If  their 
heaven  is  low,  every  thing  here  on  earth  feels  its  debasing  influ- 
ences ;  everything  at  once  becomes  more  limited  and  more  grovel- 
ing ;  the  future  becomes  more  circumscribed ;  patriotism  is  mate- 
rialized ;  generous  traditions  are  engulfed  ;  the  moral  sense  becomes 
effeminated;  the  worship  of  self  is  alone  exalted,  and  all  conserva- 
tive principles  depart,  one  after  another. 

We  then  conclude,  on  the  one  hand,  that  there  exists  the  most 
intimate  union,  not  only  between  the  happiness  of  a  people  and 
their  religion,  but  between  their  religion  and  true  theology  ;  and, 
on  the  other  hand,  that  if  it  was  always  highly  proper  that  this 
science  should  teach  for  all  and  before  all,  never  was  this  charac- 
ter more  necessary  to  it  than  in  treating  of  the  doctrine  which  is 
now  to  engage  our  attention.  It  is  the  doctrine  of  doctrines — the 
doctrine  which  teaches  us  all  the  others,  and  by  virtue  of  which 
alone  they  are  doctrines ;  the  doctrine  which  is  to  the  soul  of  the 
believer  what  the  air  is  to  his  lungs— necessary  for  his  birth, 
growth,  and  perseverance  in  the  Christian  life. 

Under  the  inspiration,  then,  of  this  twofold  thought,  this  book 
has  been  written. 


PREFACE.  XXXI 

Every  thing  in  it,  I  trust,  will  show  my  serious  desire  to  render 
it  useful  to  Christians  of  every  class. 

To  this  end,  I  have  cast  off  all  the  forms  of  the  schools.  With- 
out renouncing  entirely  quotations  from  ancient  languages,  I  have 
yet  used  them  sparingly.  In  exhibiting  the  admirable  unanimity 
of  Christian  antiquity  on  this  question,  I  have  confined  myself  to 
general  facts.  In  disposing  the  order  of  the  chapters,  I  have  neg- 
lected the  ordinary  rules  of  the  didactic,  to  follow  those  of  the  popu- 
lar logic  ;  which  commences  by  presenting  the  objections,  and 
closes  with  the  proofs.  In  a  word,  when  it  has  been  found  neces- 
sary to  treat  the  different  questions  which  relate  to  the  subject, 
and  which  ought  to  be  found  here,  for  the  full  presentation  of  the 
doctrine,  I  have  referred  them  all  to  a  special  chapter.  And  there, 
too,  I  have  gone  against  the  advice  of  some  friends,  in  employing 
a  mode  w-hich  seems  to  them  out  of  harmony  with  the  general 
tone  of  the  book ;  but  to  me,  seems  to  make  the  clear  and  rapid 
comprehension  of  the  subject  more  easy. 

It  is  then  under  this  simple  and  practical  form,  that  in  present- 
ing this  book  to  the  Church  of  God,  I  am  happy  in  being  able  to 
recommend  it  to  the  blessing  of  Him  who  preached  in  the  streets, 
and  who  thus  characterized  his  own  ministry, — the  gospel  is 
preached  to  tfie  poor ! 

Happy,  if  these  pages  confirm,  in  the  simplicity  and  blessedness 
of  their  faith,  those  Christians  who,  though  unlettered,  have  al- 
ready believed,  through  the  Scriptures,  in  the  full  inspiration  of 
the  Scriptures  !  Happy,  if  some  burdened  and  weary  souls  are  led 
to  hear  more  attentively  that  God  v/ho  speaks  to  them  in  every 
line  of  the  holy  Book  !  Happy,  if  by  our  words,  some  travelers, 
(like  the  pilgrim  Jacob,  In'  the  stone  of  Bethel,)  after  having  re- 
posed their  wearied  spirits  with  too  much  indifference  on  this  book 
of  God,  should  at  last  com.e  to  recognize  this  mysterious  ladder 
which  rises  thence  to  heaven,  and  by  which  alone  the  messages 
of  crrace  can  descend  upon  tln'ir  souls,  and  their  prayers  go  up  to 
God  !  May  I  urge  them,  in  their  turn,  to  pour  out  upon  this  sa- 
cred object  t!ie  oU  of  their  gratitude  and  joy,  and  learn  to  exclaim^ 
"  Surelv  the  Lord  is  here — it  is  tlie  house  of  God — it  is  the  gate 
of  heaven  !" 

For  myself,  I  say  it  fearlessly;  in  prosecuting  this  work  I  have 
often  been  constrained  to  give  thanks  to  God  for  having  called  me 
to  it ;  for  1  have  there  seen  more  than  once,  the  divine  majesty 


XXXU  PREFACE. 

fill  with  its  splendor,  the  entire  temple  of  the  Scriptures  ;  I  have 
seen  all  the  threads  of  that  coarse  garment,  with  which  the  Son 
of  Man  was  clothed,  become  suddenly  such  as  no  fuller  on  earth 
could  make  them;  1  have  otlen  seen  this  book  illuminated  by  the 
glory  of  God,  and  every  word  appear  radiant.  In  fine,  I  have  felt 
what  we  always  experience  in  sustainhig  a  cause  which  is  holy 
and  true  ;  that  it  grows  the  more  in  truth  and  majesty,  the  more 
you  contemplate  it. 

My  God,  grant  that  I  may  love  this  word,  and  possess  it  as  fully 
as  thou  hast  taught  me  to  admire  it ! 

"  All  flesh  is  grass,  and  all  the  goodliness  thereof  is  as  the  flower 
of  the  field  ;  the  grass  withereth,  the  flower  fadeth  ;  but  the  word 
of  our  God  endureth  for  ever,  and  it  is  this  word  which  is  preached 
unto  us." 


THEOPNEUSTYi 


THE  PLENARY  INSPIRATION  OP  THE  HOLY  SCRIPTURES. 


Our  design  in  this  book,  by  the  help  of  God  and  the  sole  au- 
thority of  his  word,  is,  to  expound,  defend  and  estaWish  the  Chris- 
tian doctrine  of  inspiration. 


CHAPTER  I. 

DEFINITION  OF  THEOPNEUSTY. 
SECTION    1. 

This  term  expresses  that  mysterious  power  by  which 
the  Divine  Spirit  made  the  authors  of  the  Old  and  New 
Testaments  compose  them,  just  as  the  church  has  re- 
ceived them.  "  All  Scripture,"  an  apostle  says,  "  is 
ihcopneustic.^'* 

This  Greek  term  perhaps  was  new,  even  among-  the 
Greeks,  at  the  time  when  St.  Paul  employed  it.  Yet. 
if  it  was  not  used  by  the  idolatrous  Greeks,  it  was  em- 
ployed by  the  Hellenistic  Jews. 

JosephuSjt  the  historian,  contemporary  with  St.  Paul, 
employs  a  very  similar  term,  in  his  first  book  against 

•  2  Tim.  iii.  16.    Theopneust  would  be  more  exact,  but  less  euphonic. 
tP.  1036.  AureLAllobr.  1611. 


34  DEFINITION. 

Apion,  when  he  says,  in  speaking-  of  all  the  prophets, 
"  who  composed  the  twenty-two  sacred  books  of  the 
Old  Testament,"  he  adds,  that  "  they  wrote  after  the 
fneusty  (or  inspiration)  which  comes  from  God*  And 
the  Jewish  Philosopher,  Philo,t  himself  contemporary 
with  Joseph  us,  in  the  account  of  his  embassy  to  the 
Emperor  Caligula,  using-  likewise  a  term  very  similar 
to  St.  Paul's,  calls  the  Scriptures  theochristic  oracles  ;% 
that  is,  oracles  given  under  the  anointing  of  God." 
Theopneusty  is  not  a  system,  but  a  fact ;  and  like  all 
the  other  events  of  the  history  of  Redemption,  this  fact, 
attested  by  the  Holy  Scriptures,  is  one  of  the  doctrines 
of  our  faith. 

SECTION  II. 

At  the  same  time,  it  should  be  distinctly  observed,  that 
this  miraculous  operation  of  the  Holy  Spirit  had  not  for 
its  object  the  sacred  writers,  who  were  only  his  instru- 
ments, and  who  were  soon  to  pass  away ;  but  its  object 
was  the  sacred  books  themselves,  which  were  destined 
to  reveal  to  the  Church  from  age  to  age,  the  immuta- 
ble counsels  of  God. 

The  influence  which  was  exercised  upon  these  men, 
and  of  which  they  themselves  were  conscious  in  very 
different  degrees,  has  never  been  defined  to  us.  Nothing 
authorizes  us  to  explain  it.  The  Scriptures  themselves 
have  never  presented  to  us  its  mode  or  its  measure  as  an 
object  of  study.  They  speak  of  it  always  incidentally  ; 
they  never  connect  our  piety  with  it.  That  alone  which 
they  propose  as  the  object  of  our  faith  is  the  inspiration 
of  their  word;  is  the  divinity  of  their  books;  between 

*  Kara  -/;*'  ETcn'Ofuv  r.-jv  and  T.tv  GfoO. 

t  P.  1022.  edit.  Fraukf.  X  (dtoxon^ra  \6yta. 


DEFINITION.  35 

these  they  make  no  difference.  Their  word,  say  they, 
is  theopneustic ;  their  books  are  of  God,  whether  they 
recount  the  mysteries  of  a  past  anterior  to  the  creation, 
or  those  of  a  future  posterior  to  the  return  of  the  Son  of 
Man  ;  the  eternal  counsels  of  the  most  High,  the  secrets 
of  the  human  heart,  or  the  deep  things  of  God  ;  whether 
they  give  utterance  to  their  own  emotions  or  record 
their  own  recollections,  relate  contemporaneous  events, 
copy  genealogies  or  make  extracts  from  inspired  docu- 
ments ;  their  writings  are  inspired  ;  their  statements  are 
directed  by  heaven  ;  it  is  always  God  who  speaks,  who 
relates,  ordains  or  reveals  by  their  mouth,  and  who,  to 
accomplish  it,  employs  their  personality  in  different 
degrees.  For  '•  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  was  upon  them, 
and  his  word  upon  their  tongue."  And  if  it  is  always 
the  word  of  man,  because  it  is  always  men  who  utter 
it,  it  is  likewise  always  the  word  of  God,  for  it  is  alway» 
God  that  superintends,  guides  and  employs  them.  They 
give  their  narrations,  their  doctrines,  or  their  precepts, 
"  not  in  the  words  which  man's  wisdom  teacheth,  but 
which  the  Holy  Spirit  teacheth."  And  it  is  thus  that 
God  has  constituted  himself  not  only  the  voucher  of  all 
these  facts,  the  author  of  all  these  ordinances,  and  the 
revealer  of  all  these  truths,  but  that  also  he  has  caused 
them  to  be  given  to  the  Church  in  the  precise  order, 
measure  and  terms  which  he  has  judged  most  condu- 
cive to  his  heavenly  design. 

If  then,  we  are  asked  how  this  theopneustic  work  was 
accomplished  in  the  men  of  God,  we  should  reply,  that 
we  do  not  know,  and  that  we  are  not  to  know,  and  that 
it  is  in  the  same  ignorance,  and  in  a  perfectly  similar 
faith,  that  we  receive  the  doctrine  of  the  regeneration  or 
sanctification  of  a  soul  by  the  Holy  Spirit.     We  be- 


36  DEFINITION. 

lieve  that  the  Spirit  illumines  this  soul,  purifies  it,  quick 
ens  it,  consoles  it,  softens  it ;  we  recognize  all  these 
effects ;  we  know  and  we  adore  their  cause ;  but  \vt 
consent  to  a  perpetual  ignorance  of  the  mode.  Thus 
let  it  be  then  with  Theopneusty. 

And  if  we  were  still  asked  to  say  at  least,  what  these 
men  of  God  experienced  in  their  organs,  in  their  will, 
or  in  their  understanding,  whilst  they  were  inscribing- 
the  sacred  pages,  we  should  reply,  that  the  powers  o 
inspiration  were  not  felt  in  the  same  degree  by  each  of 
them,  and  that  their  experiences  were  not  uniform  ;  but 
we  should  add  that  the  knowledge  of  this  is  almost  in 
different  to  the  interests  of  our  faith,  for  that  is  concernec 
with  the  book  and  not  with  the  men.  It  is  the  book 
that  is  inspired,  and  totally  so.  This  assurance  is  suffi- 
cient for  us. 

SECTION  III. 

Three  classes  of  men,  in  these  latter  days,  Avithout 
disavowing  the  divinity  of  Christianity,  and  without  pre- 
tending to  decline  the  authority  of  the  Scriptures,  have 
considered  themselves  justifiable  in  rejecting  this  doc- 
trine. 

The  one  class  has  been  totally  ignorant,  etc  i  of  the 
existence  of  this  action  of  the  Holy  Spirit ;  others  have 
denied  its  universality ;  others  again  its  j/hnilnde. 

The  first,  as  Schleiermacher,*  Dewette,!  and   many 
other  German  theologians,  reject  all  miraculous  inspi- 
ration, and  attribute  to  the  sacred  writers  only  whr 
Cicero  attributes  to  the  poets  ;  afflatuw,  spiritus  dlvin 
a  breathing  of  the  divine  Spirit,  "a  divine  action  of  n 

*  Schleiermacher  der  christliche  Glauhe.  Band  1,  S.  115. 
t  De\v<*tte  ;  Lelirhnch  AiuAerk.    Tw'i^^leii  :  Voslesungen  ube  " 
matik,  torae  1,  p.  424,  cfcc. 


DEFINITION.  37 

.ure,  an  interior  power,  like  the  other  vital  forces  of 
nature." 

Others,  like  Michaelis,*  and  as  formerly,  Theodore 
of  Mopsuesta,  while  fully  admitting  the  existence  of  an 
inspiration,  are  unwilling  to  acknowledge  it,  for  more 
than  a  fart  of  the  holy  books  ;  for  the  first  and  the 
fourth  evangelist,  for  example ;  for  a  part  of  the  epis- 
tles ;  for  a  part  of  Moses,  a  part  of  Isaiah,  and  a  part  of 
Daniel.  These  portions  of  the  Scriptures,  say  they, 
are  from  God,  the  others  from  men. 

The  third  class,  as  Mr.  Twesten  in  Germany,  and  as 
many  theologians  in  Englandf  extend,  it  is  true,  the 
notion  of  a  theopneusty  to  all  parts  of  the  Bible,  but  not 
to  all  equally^  (nicht  gleichmassig.) — Inspiration,  ac- 
cording to  them,  is  indeed  universal,  but  unequal ;  often 
imperfect ;  accompanied  by  innocent  errors ;  and  ex- 
tended, according  to  the  nature  of  the  passages,  in  very 
different  degrees  ;  of  which  they  constitute  themselves, 
more  or  less  the  judges. 

Many  of  them,  especially  in  England,  have  divided 
inspiration  into  four  kinds — inspiration  of  superintend- 
c.  ce^  by  which  the  sacred  authors  have  been  constantly 
prese,;jyed  from  grave  errors,  in  every  thing  which  re- 
lates to  faith  and  spiritual  life  ;  inspiration  of  elevation, 
by  which  the  Divine  Spirit,  in  raising  the  thoughts  of 
the  men  of  God  to  the  purest  regions  of  truth,  has  in- 
directly impressed  the  same  characters  of  holiness  and 
j^  grandeur  on  their  words  ;  inspiration  of  direction,  un- 
j  der  the  more   powerful   action    of  which,  the  sacred 
xj  authors  were  guided   by  God,  both  as  to  the  selection 
j>nd  rejection  of  topics  and  thoughts ;  and,  finally,  in- 
--^tion   of  suggesti"':,,  through  which,  they  say,  all 

*  Michaelis,  Introd.  to  N.  T.  t  Drs.  Pye  Smith,  Dick,  and  Wilson. 

4 


38  DEFINITION. 

the  thoughts  and  even  the  words,  were  given  by  God 
through  a  still  more  direct  and  energetic  operation  of 
his  Spirit. 

"  Theopneusty,"  says  Mr.  Twesten,  ''  doubtless  ex- 
, tends  even  to  the  words,  but  only  when  the  choice  or 
employment  of  them  is  connected  with  the  interior  re- 
ligious life  ;  for,"  he  adds,  "  we  must  make  distinctions 
in  this  respect,  between  the  Old  and  New  Testaments, 
between  the  law  and  the  gospel,  between  history  and 
prophecy,  between  narratives  and  doctrines,  between 
the  apostles  and  their  apostolic  aids." 

All  these  distinctions,  we  consider  fanciful ;  the  Bible 
does  not  authorize  them  ;  the  Church  of  the  first  eight 
centuries  of  the  christian  era  knew  nothing  of  them ; 
and  we  must  regard  them  as  erroneous  and  injurious. 

Our  object,  in  this  book,  is  to  prove,  in  opposition  to 
these  three  systems,  the  existence,  universality  and  ful- 
ness of  inspiration. 

Our  first  inquiry  is,  whether  the  Scriptures  were 
divinely  and  miraculously  inspired.  We  affirm  it. 
Then  we  inquh-e,  whether  the  parts  of  the  Scriptures 
which  are  inspired,  are  so,  equally  and  entirely  :  or,  in 
other  words  ;  whether  God  has  provided,  in  a  definite 
though  mysterious  manner,  that  the  very  words  of  the 
holy  book  should  always  be  what  they  ought  to  be,  and 
should  be  free  from  error.  This  we  affirm.  Finally, 
we  inquire  whether  the  whole  Bible,  or  only  a  part,  is 
thus  inspired.  We  affirm  this  kind  and  degree  of  in- 
spiration of  all  the  Scriptures  ;  the  historical  books  as 
well  as  the  prophecies,  the  Epistles  as  well  as  the 
Psalms,  the  gospels  of  Mark  and  Luke  as  well  as  those 
of  John  and  Matthew  ;  the  history  of  Paul's  shipwreck 
in  the  Adriatic  Sea,  as  well  as  that  of  the  destruction  of 


DEFINITION.  39 

the  ancient  world  ;  the  scenes  of  Mamre  under  Abra- 
ham's tent,  as  those  of  the  days  of  Christ  in  the  eternal 
tents ;  the  prophetic  prayers  in  which  the  Messiah, 
a  thousand  years  before  his  advent,  exclaimed  in  the 
Psalms  ;  "  My  God,  my  God,  why  hast  thou  forsaken 
me?  They  pierced  my  hands  and  my  feet;  they  cast 
lots  upon  my  vesture ;"  as  well  as  the  narrative  of  the 
same  events  by  the  evangelists. 

In  other  words,  we  aim  to  establish  by  the  word  of 
God — that  the  Scriptures  are  from  God — that  all  the 
Scriptures  are  from  God — and  that  every  part  of  the 
Scriptures  is  from  God. 

At  the  same  time,  we  would  be  understood  in  making 
this  assertion.  In  maintaining  that  all  the  Bible  is  from 
God,  we  are  far  from  thinking  that  this  excludes  man. 
We  shall  illustrate  this  point  more  clearly  hereafter,  but 
we  deem  it  necessary  to  allude  to  it  in  this  connection. 
Every  word  of  the  Bible  is  as  really  from  man,  as  it  is 
from  God.  In  a  certain  sense,  the  Epistle  to  the  Ro- 
mans is  entirely  a  letter  of  Paul ;  and  in  a  still  higher 
sense,  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans  is  entirely  a  letter 
from  God.  Pascal  might  have  dictated  one  of  his  Pro- 
vincial letters  to  a  mechanic  of  Clermont,  and  another 
to  the  abbess  of  Port  Royal.  Would  the  first  have  been 
any  less  Pascalian  than  the  other?  Surely  not.  The 
great  Newton,  when  he  desired  to  transmit  his  wonder- 
ful discoveries  to  the  world,  might  have  procured  some 
child  in  Cambridge  to  write  the  fortieth,  and  some  ser- 
vant of  his  college  to  write  the  forty-first  proposition  of 
his  immortal  Principia,  whilst  he  dictated  the  other 
pages  to  Barrow  and  Gregory.  Should  we  thence 
have  possessed  in  any  less  degree,  the  discoveries  of  his 
genius  and  the  mathematical  reasonings  which  were  to 


40  DEFINITION. 

exhibit  all  the  movements  of  the  universe  under  the 
same  law?  Would  the  entire  work  have  been  any 
less  Newton's?  Surely  not.  Perhaps  at  the  same 
time,  some  man  of  leisure  might  have  felt  some  interest 
in  ascertaining-  the  emotions  of  these  two  great  men,  or 
the  simple  thought  of  that  child,  or  the  honest  preju- 
dices of  that  servant,  while  their  four  pens,  alike  docile, 
were  tracing  the  Latin  sentences  which  were  dictated 
to  them.  You  may  have  been  told  that  the  two  last, 
even  when  writing,  were  roving  in  their  imaginations 
in  the  gardens  of  the  city,  or  in  the  court  yards  of 
Trinity  College  ;  whilst  the  two  professors,  entering 
with  lively  transports  into  all  the  thoughts  of  their 
friend,  and  soaring  in  his  sublime  flight,  like  the  eaglets 
upon  their  mother's  back,  were  plunging  with  him  into 
the  higher  regions  of  science,  borne  along  and  aloft 
upon  his  powerful  wings,  and  sailing  enchanted  in  the 
new  and  boundless  space  which  he  had  opened  to  them. 
Yet,  you  may  have  been  told  that,  among  the  lines  thus 
dictated,  there  are  some  which  neither  the  child  nor 
even  the  professors  were  able  to  comprehend.  What 
do  I  care  for  these  details  ,  you  would  have  replied.  I 
will  not  spend  my  time  upon  them  ;  it  is  the  book, 
Newton's  iDook  I  want  to  study.  Its  preface,  its  title, 
its  first  line,  its  last  line,  all  its  theorems,  easy  or  diffi- 
cult, understood  or  not  understood,  are  from  the  same 
author  ;  and  that  is  sufficient  for  me.  Whoever  the 
writers  may  have  been,  and  at  whatever  different  eleva- 
tions their  thoughts  may  have  ranged  ;  their  faithful  and 
superintended  hands  traced  alike  the  thoughts  of  their 
master  upon  the  same  paper ;  and  I  can  there  always 
study  with  an  equal  confidence,  in  the  very  words  of  his 
genius,  the  mathematical  principles  of  Newton's  Philo- 


DEFINITION.  4 1 

Sophy.  Such  is  the  fact  of  Theopneusty ;  the  divine 
power  in  causing-  the  Holy  Scriptures  to  be  written  by 
inspired  men,  has,  almost  uniformly  put  in  operation 
their  understandings,  their  wills,  their  memories  and  all 
their  individualities,* (as  we  shall  presently  shew.) 

It  is  thus  that  God,  who  would  make  known  to  his 
elect,  in  an  eternal  book,  the  spiritual  principles  of  the 
divine  philosophy ;  has  dictated  its  pages,  during  six- 
teen centuries,  to  priests,  kings,  warriors,  shepherds, 
tax-gatherers,  fishermen,  scribes,  and  tent-makers.  Its 
first  line,  its  last  line,  all  its  instructions,  understood  or 
not  understood,  are  from  the  same  author  :  and  that  is 
sufficient  for  us.  Whoever  the  writers  may  have  been, 
and  whatever  their  circumstances,  their  impressions,  or 
their  understanding  of  the  book  ;  they  have  all  written 
with  a  faithful,  superintended  hand,  on  the  same  scroll, 
under  the  dictation  of  the  same  master,  to  whom  a 
thousand  years  are  as  one  day  ;  such  is  the  origin  of 
the  Bible.  1  will  not  waste  my  time  in  vain  questions  ; 
I  will  study  the  book.  It  is  the  word  of  Moses,  the 
word  of  Amos,  the  word  of  John,  the  word  of  Paul; 
but  it  is  the  mind  of  God  and  the  word  of  God. 

We  should  then  deem  it  a  very  erroneous  statement 
to  say  ;  certain  passages  in  the  Bible  are  from  men,  and 
certain  others  from  God.  No  ;  every  verse,  without 
exception,  is  from  men  ;  and  every  verse,  without  ex- 
ception, is  from  God :  whether  he  speaks  directly  in 
his  own  name,  or  whether  he  employs  all  the  individu- 
ality* of  the  sacred  writer.     And  as  St.  Bernard  says 

•  Translator's  Note. — The  word  "individuality"  is  here  employed,  not 
in  its  ordinary,  perhaps  its  only  true  signification;  which  is;  separate, 
personal  existence.  The  translator,  for  the  sake  of  avoiding  circumlocu- 
tion, intends  it  to  represent  throughout  this  work— the  expression  of  per- 
Bonal  peculiarities  in  the  style  and  contents  of  a  writing. 

4* 


42  DEFINITION. 

of  the  living  works  of  the  regenerated  man,  that  "  our 
will  performs  none  of  them  without  grace  ;  but  that 
grace  too  performs  none  of  them  without  our  will  ;"  so 
must  we  say,  that  in  the  scriptures,  God  has  done 
nothing  but  by  man,  and  man  has  done  nothing  but  by 
God. 

There  is,  in  fact,  a  perfect  parallel  between  Theo- 
pneusty  and  efficacious  grace.  In  the  operations  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  in  inditing  the  sacred  books,  and  in  those 
of  the  same  Spirit  converting  a  soul,  and  causing  it  to 
walk  in  the  paths  of  holiness,  man  is  in  some  respects 
entirely  passive,  in  others  entirely  active.  God  there 
does  every  thing ;  man  there  does  all ;  and  we  may  say 
of  all  these  works,  as  St.  Paul  said  of  one  of  them  to  the 
Philippians ;  "  it  is  God  who  worketh  in  you  both  to 
will  and  to  day*  And  we  see  that  in  the  Scriptures, 
the  same  work  is  attributed  alternately  to  God  and  to 
man ;  God  converts,  and  it  is  man  who  converts  him- 
self; God  circumcises  the  heart,  God  gives  a  new 
heart,  and  it  is  man  who  must  circumcise  his  own  heart 
and  make  to  himself  a  new  heart.  "  Not  only  because 
we  must  employ  the  means  of  obtaining  such  an  effect," 
says  the  famous  Pres.  Edwards,  in  his  admirable  re- 
marks against  the  Arminians,  "  but  because  this  effect 
itself  is  our  act,  as  well  as  our  duty ;  God  producing 
all,  and  we  acting  all."t 

Such  is  then  the  word  of  God.  It  is  God  speaking 
in  man,  God  speaking  by  man,  God  speaking  as  man, 
God  speaking  for  man.  We  have  affirmed  it ;  and 
now  must  prove  it. 

Perhaps,  however,  it  will  be  proper  first  to  define  this 
doctrine  with  more  precision. 

•  Phil.  ii.  13.  t  Edwards's  Remarks,  &c.  p.  251. 


DEFINITION.  43 

SECTION  IV. 

In  theory,  we  might  say  that  a  reh'gion  could  be 
divine,  without  the  miraculous  inspiration  of  its  books. 
It  might  be  possible,  for  example,  to  conceive  of  a 
Christianity  without  Theopneusty  ;  and  it  might  per 
haps,  be  conceived  that  every  other  miracle  of  our  re- 
ligion, except  that,  was  a  fact.  In  this  supposition, 
(which  is  totally  unauthorized,)  the  eternal  Father 
would  have  given  his  Son  to  the  world  ;  the  all-creating 
Word,  made  flesh,  would  have  undergone  the  death  of 
the  cross  for  us,  and  have  sent  down  upon  the  apostles 
the  spirit  of  wisdom  and  miraculous  powers ;  but,  all 
these  mysteries  of  redemption  once  accomplished,  he 
would  have  abandoned  to  these  men  of  God  the  work 
of  writing  our  sacred  books,  according  to  their  own 
wisdom  ;  and  their  writings  would  have  presented  to 
us  only  the  natural  language  of  their  supernatural  illu- 
minations, of  their  convictions  and  their  charity.  Such 
an  Older  of  things  is  undoubtedly  a  vain  supposition, 
directly  contrary  to  the  testimony  of  the  Scriptures  as 
to  their  own  nature  ;  but,  without  remarking  here,  that 
it  explains  nothing ;  and  that,  miracle  for  miracle,  that 
of  illumination  is  not  less  inexplicable  than  Theo- 
pneusty ;  without  further  saying  that  the  word  of  God 
possesses  a  divine  power  peculiar  to  itself:  such  an 
order  of  things,  if  it  were  realized,  would  have  exposed 
us  to  innumerable  errors,  and  plunged  us  into  the  most 
ruinous  uncertainty.*  With  no  security  against  the 
imprudence  of  the  writers,  we  should  not  have  been 

*  For,  upon  what  testimony  could  we  then  found  our  faith  ;  upon  that 
of  menl  But  faith  is  founded  on  the  word  of  God  alone.  (Rom.  x.  17.) 
By  this  system  then,  you  will  have  obtained  only  a  Christianity  without 
Christians. 


44  DEFINITION. 

able  to  give  their  writings  even  the  authority  which  the 
Church  now  concedes  to  those  of  Augustine,  Bernard, 
Luther,  Calvin,  or  of  a  multitude  of  other  men  enlight- 
ened in  the  truth  by  the  Holy  Spirit.  We  are  suffi- 
ciently aware  how  many  imprudent  words  and  errone- 
ous propositions  mar  the  most  beautiful  pages  of  these 
admirable  writers.  And  yet  the  apostles  (on  the  sup- 
position we  have  just  made,)  would  have  been  subjected 
still  more  than  they,  to  serious  errors  ;  since  they  could 
not  have  had,  like  the  doctors  of  the  church,  the  word 
of  God,  by  which  to  correct  their  Avritings  ;  and  since 
they  would  have  been  compelled  to  invent  the  entire 
language  of  religious  science  ;  for  a  science,  we  know, 
is  more  than  half  formed,  when  its  language  is  made. 
What  fatal  errors,  what  grievous  ignorance,  what  in- 
evitable imprudence  had  necessarily  accompanied,  in 
them,  a  revelation  without  Theopneusty  ;  and  in  what 
deplorable  doubts  had  the  Church  then  been  left ! — 
errors  in  the  selection  of  facts,  errors  in  estimating  them, 
errors  in  stating  them,  errors  in  the  conception  of  the 
relations  which  ihej  hold  to  doctrines,  errors  in  the  ex- 
pression of  these  doctrines  themselves,  errors  of  omis- 
sion, errors  of  language,  errors  of  exaggeration,  errors 
m  the  adoption  of  national,  provincial  or  party  preju- 
dices, errors  in  the  anticipations  of  the  future  and  in  the 
estimate  of  the  past. 

But,  thanks  to  God,  it  is  not  so  with  our  sacred  books. 
They  contain  no  errors  ;  all  their  writings  are  inspired 
of  God.  "  Holy  men  of  God  spake  as  they  were  moved 
by  the  Holy  Ghost  ;  not  in  the  words  which  man's 
v/isdom  teacheth,  but  which  the  Holy  Ghost  teacheth  ;" 
so  that  none  of  these  words  ouo-ht  to  be  neglected,  and 
we  are  called  to  respect  them  and  to  study  them  even 


DEFINITION.  45 

to  their  least  iota  and  to  their  least  tittle,  for  these 
"words  of  the  Lord  are  pure  words  ;  as  silver  tried  in 
a  fu?nace  of  earth,  they  are  perfect."  These  assertions, 
themselves  testimonies  of  the  word  of  God,  contain  pre- 
cisely our  last  definition  of  Theopneusty,  and  lead  us  to 
characterize  it  finally,  as  "  that  inexplicable  power 
which  the  Divine  Spirit  formerly  exercised  over  the 
authors  of  the  Holy  Scriptures,  to  guide  them  even  in 
the  employment  of  the  words  they  were  to  use,  and  to 
preserve  them  from  all  error,  as  well  as  from  every 
omission." 

This  new  definition,  which  may  appear  complex,  is 
not  so  in  reality  :  because  the  two  points  of  which  it  is 
composed,  are  equivalents :  to  receive  the  one  of  which, 
is  to  receive  the  other. 

We  propose  them,  then,  separately  to  the  consent  of 
our  readers,  and  we  offer  them  the  choice  between  the 
two.  The  one  has  more  precision,  the  other  more  sim- 
plicity ;  inasmuch  as  it  presents  the  doctrine  under  a 
form  more  separate  from  every  question  about  the  mode 
of  inspiration  and  about  the  secret  experience  of  the 
sacred  writers.  Accept  one  or  the  other  fully,  and  you 
have  rendered  to  the  Scriptures  the  honor  and  the  faith 
which  are  their  due. 

We  propose  then  to  establish  the  doctrine  of  Theo- 
pneusty under  the  one  or  the  other  of  these  two  forms ; 
"  the  Scriptures  are  given  and  guarantied  by  God,  even 
in  their  very  language  ;"  and,  "the  Scriptures  contain 
no  error ;"  that  is,  they  say  all  they  ought  to  say,  and 
only  what  they  ought  to  say. 

Now,  how  shall  we  establish  this  doctrine?  By  the 
Scriptures  themselves,  and  only  by  the  Scriptures. 
When  their  truth  is  once  admitted,  it  is  from  them  we 


46  DEFINITION. 

must  learn  what  they  are  ;  and  when  they  have  once 
asserted  that  they  are  inspired  of  God,  it  is  still  for  them 
to  say  how  they  are  inspired,  and  how  far. 

To  undertake  to  prove,  a  priori,  their  inspiration,  in 
arguing  from  the  necessity  of  this  miracle  for  the  secu- 
rity of  our  faith,  would  be,  to  reason  feebly,  and  almost 
to  imitate,  in  one  respect,  the  presumption  which,  in 
another  respect,  imagines,  a  priori,  four  degrees  of 
Theopneusty.  Again,  to  undertake  to  establish  the  in- 
spiration of  the  Scriptures  upon  the  consideration  of 
their  beauty,  their  uniform  wisdom,  their  prophetic  pru- 
dence, and  all  those  marks  of  divinity  which  are  there 
revealed,  would  be  indeed,  to  rest  our  proof  on  reason- 
ings doubtless  just,  but  contestable,  or  at  least  contested. 
We  must  then  stand  upon  the  Scriptural  declarations 
alone.  We  have  no  other  authority  for  the  doctrines 
of  our  faith  ;  and  Theopneusty  is  one  of  those  doctrines. 

At  the  same  time,  let  us  here  guard  against  a  misap- 
prehension. It  may  happen  that  some  reader  not  fully 
confirmed  in  his  belief  of  Christianity,  mistaking  our 
design,  and  thinking  that  from  our  book  he  may  gather 
arguments  to  establish  his  faith,  shall  be  disappointed, 
and  shall  feel  himself  authorized  to  reproach  our  argu- 
ment as  having  the  capital  defect  of  attempting  to  prove 
the  inspiration  of  the  Scriptures  by  that  inspiration. 

Here  we  must  vindicate  ourselves.  We  have  not 
written  these  pages  for  the  disciples  of  Porphyry,  of 
Voltaire,  or  Rousseau  ;  nor  has  our  object  been  to  prove 
that  the  Scriptures  are  worthy  of  faith.  Others  have 
done  this  ;  it  is  not  our  task.  We  address  men  wno  re- 
spect the  Scriptures,  and  who  admit  their  truth.  It  is 
to  them  we  assert,  that  the  Scriptures  being  true,  de- 
clare themselves  inspired  ;  and  that  being  inspired,  they 


DEFINITION.  4T 

declare  themselves  entirely  so  ;  wnence  we  conclude 
that  they  must  be  so. 

Certainly  this  doctrine  is  one  of  the  simplest  and 
clearest  of  all  truths,  to  the  mind  humbly  and  rationally 
submissive  to  the  testimony  of  the  Scriptures.  We  may 
indeed  hear  modern  theologians  represent  it  as  full  of 
uncertainty  and  difficulties  ;  but  men  who  have  desired 
to  study  it  only  by  the  light  of  God's  word,  have  not 
found  there  these  difficulties  and  this  uncertainty.  No- 
thing, on  the  contrary,  is  more  clearly  or  more  fre- 
quently taught  in  the  Scriptures,  than  the  inspiration  of 
the  Scriptures.  The  ancients  too,  never  found  the  em- 
barrassments and  doubts  on  this  subject,  which  confound 
the  learned  of  our  day.  For  them  the  Bible  either  was 
of  God,  or  it  was  not  of  God.  Antiquity  presents  on 
this  point  an  admirable  unanimity*  But,  since  the 
moderns,  in  imitation  of  the  Jewish  Talmudists  and 
Rabbins  of  the  middle  ages,t  have  imagined  sage  dis- 
tuictions  between  four  or  five  degrees  of  inspiration,  who 
can  be  astonished  to  find  that  difficulties  and  uncertainty 
have  increased  in  their  view  ?  They  contest  that  which 
the  Scriptures  teach,  and  they  inculcate  what  the  Scrip- 
tures do  not  teach.  Their  embarrassment  is  easily  ex- 
plained, but  the  blame  of  it  rests  on  their  temerity. 

The  Bible  renders  so  clear  a  testimony  to  its  own  full 
inspiration,  that  differences  of  opinion  among  Christians 
on  a  subject  so  well  defined,  are  astonishing.  And  the 
explanation  of  it  will  only  add  so  much  testimony  to  the 

*  See  on  this  subject  the  learned  dissertation  of  Dr.  Rudelbarh;  in  -which 
he  establishes  from  history,  'he  sound  doctrines  of  inspiration  as  we  have 
endeavored  to  establish  them  from  the  Scriptures.  (Zeitsrhrift  fur  die 
gesammte  r,utherische  Theologie  und  Kirche,  von  Rudelbach  und  Gue- 
ricke.    1840.) 

t  See  our  chap.  5,  sec.  2,  ques.  44. 


48  DEFINITION. 

power  and  evil  of  prejudice.  The  mind,  already  pre- 
occupied with  objections  which  it  has  originated,  distorts 
the  sacred  passages,  and  turns  them  from  their  natural 
sense,  and  by  a  secret  labor  of  thought,  forces  itself  to 
reconcile  them  with  the  difficulties  which  embarrass  it. 
These  Christians  deny,  in  spite  of  the  Scriptures,  the 
full  inspiration  of  the  Scriptures  ;  as  the  Sadducees  de- 
nied the  resurrection,  because  they  found  the  miracle 
inexplicable ;  but  it  must  be  remembered  that  Jesus 
Christ  has  answered :  "  Ye  do  err,  not  knowing  the 
Scriptures,  nor  the  power  of  God."*  It  is  then  on  ac- 
count of  this  too  common  disposition  of  the  human  mind, 
that  we  have  thought  it  best  not  to  present  our  scriptu- 
ral proofs,  until  after  a  full  examination  of  the  objections 
raised  against  the  doctrine. 

That  will  be  the  subject  of  the  next  chapter. 

We  desire  to  present  also,  to  our  reader,  a  more  pre- 
cise exposition  of  our  doctrine,  and  of  some  of  the  ques- 
tions connected  with  it ;  but  it  has  appeared  to  us  pre- 
ferable to  defer  this  also  to  the  last  pages  ;  both  because 
it  will  be  more  acceptable  when  the  difficulties  shall 
have  been  maturely  considered,  and  because  we  would 
not,  at  the  beginning,  repel,  by  a  too  didactic  discussion, 
the  unl<  ttered  readers  who  may  come  to  these  pages, 
seeking  the  edification  of  their  faith. 

We  are  about  then,  to  commence,  by  an  attentive  ex- 
amination of  the  difficulties  and  the  systems  raised  up 
against  the  doctrine  of  a  plenary  inspiration.  These 
difficulties  constitute  objections  ;  and  these  systems  are 
rather  evasions.  We  shall  examine  them  both  in  the 
two  succeeding  chapters. 

•  Mark  xii.  34—27. 


CHAPTER  11. 

OBJECTIONS  EXAMINED. 

It  is  objected,  that  the  individuality  of  the  sacred 
writers,  deeply  imprinted  on  their  respective  writings, 
cannot  be  reconciled  with  plenary  inspiration  ;  it  is  ob- 
jected, that  the  fallibility  of  the  translator  renders  illu- 
sory the  infallibility  of  the  original  text ;  it  is  objected, 
that  the  use  of  the  totally  human  version  of  the  Seventy, 
by  the  apostles,  renders  their  theopneusty  more  than 
doubtful ;  the  objector  refers  to  the  variations  in  the 
manuscripts,  imperfections  in  the  reasonings  and  in  the 
doctrines,  errors  in  the  facts  ;  he  brings  up  the  state- 
ments which  appear  absurd  in  the  light  of  our  more 
perfect  acquaintance  with  the  laws  of  nature ;  he  states, 
finally,  what  he  calls  the  admissions  of  St.  Paul.  We 
shall  answer  these  objections  in  order,  and  then  examine 
in  succession,  some  of  the  theories  by  which  the  doctrine 
of  plenary  inspiration  is  evaded. 

SECTION  L 

TJie  Individuality,  or  Peculiarities  of  the  Sacred  Writers^  deeply 
impressed  on  their 


It  is  first  objected,  that  this  individuality,  which  so 
pervades  the  sacred  books,  furnishes  a  powerful  testi- 
mony against  the  doctrine  of  a  full  and  constant  inspira- 
tion. We  are  told  that  it  is  impossible  to  read  the  Scrip- 
tures, without  being  struck  with  the  differences  of  lan- 
guage, of  conception,  of  style,  which  each  author  pre- 
sents. These  difTerences,  by  impressing  on  these 
5 


50  OBJECTIONS. 

writings  the  indisputable  features  of  their  personality,* 
betray,  every  where,  the  concurrence  of  their  personal 
action  in  the  composition  of  the  Scriptures.  Ahhough 
the  title  of  each  book  should  not  indicate  to  us  that  we 
are  passing  from  one  author  to  another  ;  yet  we  should 
quickly  discover  by  the  change  of  their  character,  that 
a  new  hand  has  taken  the  pen.  This  difference  shows 
itself  even  between  one  prophet  and  another,  and  between 
two  apostles.  Who  could  read  the  writings  of  Isaiah 
and  Ezekiel,  of  Amos  and  Hosea,  of  Zephaniah  and 
Habakkuk,  of  Jeremiah  and  Daniel ;  who  could  study 
successively  the  writings  of  Paul  and  Peter,  of  James 
and  John,  without  remarking  in  each  one  of  them,  the 
influence  which  his  habits,  his  condition,  his  genius,  his 
education,  his  circumstances  have  exercised  over  his 
views  of  truth,  over  his  reasoning,  and  his  language  ? 
They  describe  that  which  they  have  seen,  and  as  they 
have  seen  it.  Their  memory  has  full  play,  their  im- 
aginations are  exercised,  their  afTections  are  drawn  out, 
all  their  being  is  employed,  and  their  moral  physiog- 
nomy is  clearly  pourtrayed  in  their  writings.  We  per- 
ceive that  the  composition  of  each  book  has  depended 
greatly,  both  for  its  matter  and  its  form,  upon  the  pecu- 
liar circumstances  and  turn  of  its  author. 

Could  the  son  of  Zebedce  have  composed  the  Epistle 
to  the  Romans,  such  as  we  have  received  it  from  the 
hands  of  St.  Paul  1  Who  would  have  dreamed  of  at- 
tributing the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  to  him  ?  And  al- 
though the  catholic  letters  of  Peter  should  be  deprived 
of  their  title,  who  would  think  of  attributing  them  to 

•  Translator's  Note.—We  would  make  the  same  remark  concerning  the 
yford  personality,  sls  vfe  have  made  concerning  individuality.  See  note, 
page  41. 


INDIVIDUALITY.  51 

John?  It  is  so  likewise  with  the  evang^elists.  It  is 
perfectly  easy  to  recognize  each  one  of  them,  although 
they  speak  of  the  same  Master,  teach  the  same  doctrines, 
and  relate  the  same  incidents.  This  is  the  fact  which 
none  can  dispute;  but  the  legitimacy  of  their  inferences 
we  deny.     It  is  said, 

"  1.  If  it  were  God  alone  who  speaks  in  every  part 
of  the  Scriptures,  we  should  see,  then,  a  uniformity 
which  now  they  do  not  possess. 

2.  We  must  then  admit  that  two  different  forces  have 
acted  at  the  same  time  upon  the  sacred  writers,  while 
they  were  composing  the  Scriptures — their  own  natural 
force,  and  the  miraculous  force  of  inspiration. 

3.  From  the  conflict,  the  concurrence,  or  the  balanced 
action  of  these  two  forces,  there  must  have  resulted  an 
inspiration  variable,  gradual,  sometimes  entire,  some- 
times imperfect,  and  often  even  reduced  to  the  feeble 
measure  of  a  mere  supervision. 

4.  The  variable  power  of  the  Divine  Spirit  in  this 
combined  action,  must  have  proportioned  itself  to  the 
importance  and  to  the  difficulties  of  the  matters  treated 
by  the  sacred  author.  It  must,  in  fact,  have  withdrawn 
itself,  whenever  the  judgment  and  the  recollection  of  the 
writer  were  competent  to  the  work  ;  fur  God  performs 
no  needless  miracle." 

'■  Man  cannot  say,"  says  Bishop  Wilson.*  "  where 
this  inspiration  begins,  and  where  it  ends  " 

"  That,"  says  Dr.  Twesten,  '•  which  is  exaggerated 
ia  the  notions  of  some,  concerning  inspiration,  is  not  the 
extension  of  it  to  all  parts,  but  tlie  extension  of  it  to  all 
parts  equally.  If  inspiration  does  not  exclude  the  per- 
sonal action  of  the  sacred  writers,  neither  does  it  destroy 

*  Lect.  on  Evid.  of  Christi.nnity,  p.  506. 


52  OBJECTIONS. 

all  the  influence  of  human  imperfection.  But  we  may 
suppose  this  influence  always  feebler  in  the  writers,  in 
proportion  as  the  matter  relates  more  intimately  to 
Christ."* 

"  We  should  recognize,"  says  Dr.  Dick,  "  three  de- 
grees of  inspiration.  There  are,  in  the  first  place,  many 
things  which  the  writers  could  know  by  the  mere  exer- 
cise of  their  natural  faculties  ;  no  supernatural  influence 
was  necessary,  to  relate  them  ;  it  was  only  requisite  that 
they  should  be  infallibly  preserved  from  error.  In  the 
second  place,  there  were  other  things,  for  which  their 
understandings  and  their  fiiculties  needed  to  be  divinely 
strengthened.  Finally,  there  are  many  others  still, 
which  contain  subjects  that  made  a  direct  inspiration  in- 
dispensable."! 

Hence  it  would  result,  that  if  this  full  inspiration  was 
sometimes  necessary,  yet,  for  matters  at  once  simple 
and  not  vital  to  religion,  there  might  be  in  the  Scrip- 
tures some  innocent  errors,  and  some  of  those  stains 
which  the  hand  of  man  always  leaves  on  that  which 
it  touches. 

Whilst  the  energy  of  the  Divine  Spirit,  by  an  action 
always  powerful,  and  often  victorious,  was  enlarging 
the  understandings  of  the  men  of  God,  purifying  their 
affections,  and  making  them  seek  among  all  their  recol- 
lections, for  those  which  could  be  the  most  usefully  trans- 
mitted to  the  Church ;  the  natural  energies  of  their 
minds,  left  to  themselves  for  all  the  details  which  were 
of  no  importance  to  faith  or  virtue,  may  have  introduced 
in  the  Scriptures  some  mixture  of  inexactness  and  im- 
perfection.    "  We  must  not  then  attribute  to  the  Scrip- 

*  Vorles.  ul)er  die  Dogmatik,  Tom.  i. 
t  Essay  on  Insp.  of  Holy  Scriptures. 


INDIVIDUALITY.  53 

tures  an  unlimited  infallibility,  as  if  there  were  no  error," 
says  Dr.  Twesten.  "  Doubtless,  God  is  truth  ;  and,  in 
important  matters,  every  thing  which  comes  from  him. 
is  truth  ;  but  if  every  thing  is  not  equally  important,  then 
every  thing  does  not  come  equally  from  him  ;  and  if  in- 
spiration does  not  exclude  the  personal  aciion  of  the  sa- 
cred authors,  neither  does  it  destroy  all  the  influence 
of  human  imperfection." 

Such  is  then  the  objection. — It  assumes,  in  its  suppo- 
sitions and  in  its  conclusions,  that  there  are  in  the  Scrip- 
tures, some  passages  of  no  importance,  and  others  marred 
by  imperfection. — We  will  hereafter  repel  with  all  our 
power,  both  these  erroneous  imputations  ;  but  we  must 
defer  it  for  the  present,  as  we  are  here  considering  only 
the  living  and  personal  form  under  which  the  Scriptures 
have  been  given  to  us,  and  its  supposed  incompatibility 
with  a  plenary  inspiration. 

To  this  objection  we  reply. 

1.  We  commence  by  declaring  how  far  we  are  from 
denying  the  alleged  fact,  while  we  resist  the  false  infer- 
ences deduced  from  it.  So  far  are  we  from  overlooking 
this  human  individuality,  every  where  impressed  on  our 
sacred  books  ;  that,  on  the  contrary,  it  is  w^ith  profound 
gratitude,  with  an  ever-increasing  admiration,  we  regard 
this  living,  real,  dramatic,  human  character  infused  so 
powerfully  and  so  charmingly  into  every  pait  of  the 
book  of  God.  Yes,  (we  delight  to  say  it  to  the  objec- 
tors.) here  it  is  the  phraseology,  the  stamp,  the  accent 
of  a  Moses,  there  of  a  St.  John,  here  of  an  Isaiah,  there 
of  an  Amos,  here  of  a  Daniel,  or  St,  Peter,  there  of  a 
Nehemiah,  there  of  a  St.  Paul.  We  recognise  them, 
we  hear  them,  w^e  see  them  ;  it  is  all  but  impossible  to 
be  mistaken  in  regard  to  it.  We  admit  this  fact,  we  de- 
5* 


54  OBJECTIONS. 

lig-ht  to  study  it,  we  admire  it  profoundly  ;  and  we  there 
see,  as  we  shall  be  called  to  repeat,  more  than  an  addi- 
tional proof  of  the  divine  wisdom  which  dictated  the 
Scriptures. 

2.  What  bearing  has  the  absence  or  the  presence  of 
the  writer's  affections  on  the  fact  of  theopneusty  ?  Can- 
not God  alike  employ  them  or  dispense  with  them  ? 
He,  who  could  make  a  statue  speak  ;  can  he  not  make 
even  an  infant  speak  as  he  pleases  ?  He  who  reproved 
the  folly  of  the  prophet  by  a  dumb  animal ;  can  he  not 
impart  to  another  prophet  the  sentiments  or  the  words 
which  are  best  suited  to  the  plan  of  his  revelations  ? 
He  who  caused  the  lifeless  hand  to  come  out  from  the 
wall,  and  write  these  terrible  words :  "  Mene,  Mene, 
Tekel,  Upharsin !"  could  he  not  equally  direct  the  in- 
telligent and  pious  pen  of  his  apostle  to  write  such  words 
as  these :  "  I  say  the  truth  in  Christ,  I  lie  not ;  my  con- 
science bearing  me  witness  in  the  Holy  Ghost,  that  I 
have  great  sorrow  and  heaviness  of  heart  for  my  breth- 
ren, my  kinsmen  according  to  the  flesh?" 

Do  you  know  how  God  acts,  and  how  he  refrains 
from  acting?  Will  you  teach  us  the  mechanism  of  in- 
spiration ?  Will  you  tell  us  what  is  the  difl^erence  be- 
tween his  mode  of  influence;  when  the  personal  qualities 
of  the  writer  show  themselves,  and  when  they  do  not  ? 
Will  you  explain  to  us  how  the  concurrence  of  the 
thoughts,  the  recollections  and  the  emotions  of  the  sacred 
writers  would  impair  their  theopneusty  ;  and  will  you 
tell  us  why  this  very  concurrence  does  not  make  part 
of  it?  Between  the  fact  of  individuality  and  the  infer- 
ence which  you  draw  from  it,  there  is  an  abyss.  And 
into  this  abyss  your  intelligence  can  no  more  descend 
to  oppose  the  theopneusty,  than  ours  to  explain  it.     Was 


INDIVIDUALITY.  55 

there  not  enough  individuality  in  the  language  of  Caia- 
phas,  when  that  wicked  man,  full  of  the  bitterest  gall, 
abandoning  himself  to  the  counsels  of  his  depraved 
heart,  and  thinking  of  anything  but  speaking  the  words 
of  God,  cried  out  in  the  Jewish  council :  "  You  do  not 
understand  nor  consider  that  it  is  expedient  that  one  man 
die  for  the  people  ?"  Surely  there  was  in  those  words 
sufficient  individuality  ;  and  yet  it  is  written  that  Caia- 
phas  did  not  speak  them  of  himself,  [(xcp^iavTov)  but  that 
being  high-priest  that  year,  he  spoke  as  a  prophet,  with- 
out knowing  what  he  said  ;  announcing  that  Jesus  was 
about  to  die,  to  gather  the  children  of  God  who  are 
scattered  abroad  * 

Why  then  could  not  the  same  spirit  employ  the  pious 
affections  of  his  saints  for  announcing  the  word  of  God, 
as  well  as  use  the  hypocritical  and  wicked  thoughts  of 
his  most  odious  adversaries  ? 

3.  When  they  say,  that  if,  in  such  a  passage,  it  is  the 
style  of  Moses,  or  of  Luke,  of  Ezekiel,  or  of  John,  it 
cannot  be  that  of  God,  they  mean  to  tell  us  what  is  the 
style  of  God  ;  they  would  point  out  to  us  the  accent  of 
the  Holy  Ghost ;  they  would  teach  us  to  recognize  it  by 
the  turn  of  his  phrases,  by  the  tone  of  his  voice  ;  and 
they  would  tell  us  what  signalizes  in  the  Hebrew  lan- 
guage, or  in  the  Greek,  his  supreme  individuality. 
Since  then  you  know  it,  explain  it  to  us. 

4.  It  should  not  be  forgotten  that  the  sovereign  action 
of  God,  in  the  different  fields  of  its  exercise,  never  ex- 
cludes the  employment  of  second  causes.  On  the  con- 
trary, it  is  in  their  very  enlistment,  that  he  loves  to  man- 
ifest his  powerful  wisdom.  In  the  field  of  the  creation, 
he  gives  us  the  plants,  by  the  combined  employment  of 

*  John  xi.  49—52. 


56  OBJECTIONS. 

all  the  elements  ;  of  heat,  moisture,  electricit}'',  atmos- 
phere, light,  the  mechanical  attraction  of  the  capillary 
vessels,  and  of  the  various  work  of  the  organs.  In  the 
field  of  Providence,  he  accomplishes  the  development 
of  his  vastest  plans,  by  the  unanticipated  combination  of 
a  thousand  millions  of  human  wills  alternately  intelli- 
gent and  submissive,  or  ignorant  and  rebellious. 
"  Herod,  and  Pontius  Pilate,  with  the  Gentiles  and  the 
people  of  Israel,  (moved  by  so  many  different  passions) 
were  gathered  together,  to  do  whatsoever  thy  hand  and 
thy  counsel  determined  before,  to  be  done."  In  the 
field  of  prophecy,  it  is  still  in  the  same  manner  that  he 
leads  the  prophecies  on  to  their  fulfilment.  He  pre- 
pares, for  instance,  long  before  hand,  a  warrior-prince 
in  the  mountains  of  Persia,  and  another  in  those  of  Me- 
dia :  the  first  he  had  designated  by  name,  more  than  a 
century  before  his  birth  ;  he  unites  them  at  a  point 
named,  with  ten  other  people,  against  the  empire  of  the 
Chaldeans  ;  he  leads  them  to  surmount  a  thousand  ob- 
stacles, and  at  last  brings  them  into  great  Babylon,  at 
the  very  moment  which  terminated  the  seventy  years  so 
long  before  assigned  to  the  Jewish  captivity.  In  the 
very  field  of  his  miracles,  he  is  still  pleased  to  use  se- 
cond causes.  He  might  there  have  said  :  "  let  it  be  ;" 
and  it  would  be.  But  he  designed,  even  there,  in  em- 
ploying inferior  agents,  to  make  us  comprehend  more 
fully,  that  it  is  he  who  gives  power  to  the  feeblest  of 
them.  To  divide  the  Red  Sea,  he  causes  not  only  the 
rod  of  Moses  to  be  stretched  out  over  the  abyss ;  but 
sends  also  an  impetuous  east  wind,  which  blows  all 
night,  and  drives  back  the  waters  of  the  sea.  To  restore 
sight  to  the  man  born  blind,  he  moistens  the  clay,  and 
with  it  anoints  the  eye-lids.     In  the  field  of  redemption, 


INDIVIDUALITY.  57 

in  place  of  converting  a  soul  by  an  immediate  act  of  his 
will,  he  presents  to  it  motives,  he  makes  it  read  the  gos- 
pel, he  sends  it  preachers  ;  and  thus,  although  it  is  he 
"  who  worketh  in  us  to  will  and  to  do  of  his  good  plea- 
sure ;"  yet  '•  he  begets  us  according  to  his  own  will  by 
the  word  of  truth."  Why  then,  is  it  not  so  in  the  field 
of  Theopneusty  ?  Why,  when  he  sends  his  word ; 
should  he  not  place  it  in  the  understanding,  in  the  heart 
and  in  the  life  of  his  servants,  as  he  puts  it  upon  their 
lips  ?  Why  should  he  not  associate  their  personality 
with  that  which  they  reveal  to  us  ?  Why  should  not 
their  sentiments,  their  history,  their  experiences  make 
part  of  their  Theopneusty  ? 

5.  The  error  of  the  objection  to  which  we  reply,  may 
be  further  shewed  by  the  entire  inconsistency  of  those 
who  use  it.  In  order  to  deny  the  plenary  inspiration 
of  certain  passages  of  the  Scriptures,  they  allege  the  in- 
dividuality impressed  on  them  ;  and  yet.  it  is  admitted 
that  other  parts  of  the  holy  book,  where  this  feature  is 
equally  produced,  must  have  been  given  directly  by 
God,  even  in  their  minutest  details.  Isaiah,  Daniel, 
Ezekiel,  Jeremiah  and  the  author  of  the  Apocalypse 
have  just  as  much,  impressed,  each  one  his  own  style, 
features,  manner ;  in  a  word,  his  own  mark,  on  their 
prophecies  ;  as  Luke,  Mark,  John,  Paul  and  Peter  have 
on  their  histories  or  their  letters.  The  objection  then 
is  not  valid  ;  if  it  proves  any  thing,  it  proves  too  much. 

6.  That  which  still  strikes  us  in  this  objection  and  in 
the  system  of  intermittent  inspiration  to  which  it  is  al- 
lied, is  its  threefold  character  of  complication,  temerity 
and  puerility ; — of  complication,  for  its  advocates  sup- 
pose that  the  Divine  action,  dictating  the  Scriptures, 
was  interrupted  or  enfeebled  in  any  passage,  just  in  pro- 


58  OBJECTIONS. 

portion  to  the  diminished  difficulty  or  importance  of  the 
passage;  and  thus  they  represent  God  as  successively 
retiring"  and  advancing  in  the  spirit  of  the  sacred  writer, 
during  the  course  of  the  same  chapter  or  passage! — of 
rashness  ;  for,  not  knovv^ing  the  majesty  of  the  Scrip- 
tures, they  dare  to  suppose  that  they  have,  in  some  of 
their  parts,  no  more  than  a  human  importance,  and  that 
they  required  for  their  composition,  no  more  than  a  hu- 
man wisdom  ! — of  puerility,  we  say  too  :  for  they  fear 
to  ascribe  useless  miracles  to  God ;  as  if  the  Holy 
Spirit,  after  having,  as  they  avow,  dictated,  word  for 
word,  one  part  of  the  Scriptures,  would  have  found  it  a 
less  difficult  task,  in  other  parts,  merely  to  illuminate  or 
to  superintend  the  writer. 

7.  But  we  go  farther.  That  which  chiefly  leads  us 
to  oppose  a  theory  that  dares  to  classify  the  Scriptures 
as  inspired,  half-inspired,  and  not  inspired,  (as  if  this 
sad  doctrine  ought  to  be  deduced  from  the  flict  that  each 
book  is  characterised  by  the  peculiarities  of  its  author  ;) 
is  its  direct  opposition  to  the  Scriptures  themselves. 
The  theory  is,  that  one  part  of  the  Bible  is  made  by 
man,  and  another  part  by  God.  Now  hear  the  Bible 
itself  It  protests  that  "  all  scripture  is  given  by  inspi- 
ration of  God."  It  does  not  indicate  an  exception.  B}"- 
what  authority  then  can  any  one  make  an  exception 
which  it  does  not  admit?*  We  are  told  indeed,  that  a 
part  of  the  Scriptures  required  the  plenary  inspiration 
of  the  writer  ;  that  a  part  required  nothing  more  than 

•  It  has  been  said  that  this  declaration  refers  only  to  the  Old  Testament, 
and  that  our  author  quotes  it  here  unfairly.  The  charge  is  not  valid.  He 
selects  one  expression  of  the  Bible,  which  describes  the  nature  and  e.xtent 
of  inspiration  in  all  the  Scriptures  then  written.  And  he  niisht  strongly 
urce  upon  these  objectors  the  a  furtiori  conclusion  ;  if  the  Old  Testament 
ii  all  inspired,  what  doubt  can  remain  about  the  New.— T^r. 


INDIVIDUALITY.  59 

eminent  gifts,  and  that  still  another  part  might  have 
been  written  by  an  ordinary  man.  All  this  may  be  ; 
but  what  bearing  has  it  on  the  question  ?  When  the 
author  of  a  book  is  named  to  you  ;  you  know  that  every 
thing  in  the  book  is  his,  the  easy  and  the  diflficult,  the 
important  and  the  unimportant. 

If,  then,  "  all  Scripture  is  given  by  inspiration  of 
God ;"  how  does  it  affect  our  question,  that  there  are 
passages,  in  your  eyes  more  important,  or  more  diffi- 
cult, than  others  ?  The  least  of  the  companions  of 
Jesus  could  have  composed  the  fifth  verse  of  the  elev- 
enth chapter  of  John  : — "  Now  Jesus  loved  Martha,  and 
her  sister,  and  Lazarus:"  as  also  the  most  insignificant 
schoolmaster  could  have  written  the  first  line  of  Atha- 
iia  : — '■  Yes,  I  come  into  his  temple,  to  adore  the  Lord." 
But  if  some  one  had  told  us,  that  the  great  Racine  had 
dictated  all  his  drama  to  some  village-mayor,  should  we 
not  still  continue  to  attribute  all  its  parts  to  him  ;  its 
first  verse,  the  number  of  its  scenes,  the  names  of  its 
actors,  the  directions  for  their  entrance  and  their  exit, 
as  well  as  the  sublimest  strophes  of  its  chorusses  1  If, 
then,  God  himself  declares  to  us,  that  he  has  dictated 
all  the  Scriptures,  who  shall  dare  say  that  this  fifth 
verse  of  the  eleventh  chapter  of  John  is  any  less  from 
God,  than  the  sublime  words  which  begin  the  Gospel, 
and  which  describe  to  us  the  eternal  Word  ?  Inspira- 
tion may,  indeed,  be  more  clearly  distinguished  in  some 
passages  than  in  some  others ;  but  it  is  not,  therefore, 
less  real  in  the  one  than  in  the  other. 

In  a  word,  if  there  were  parts  of  the  Bible  without 
inspiration,  it  would  no  longer  be  truth  to  say,  that  all 
the  Bible  is  divmely  inspired  ;  it  would  no  more  be  en- 
tirely the  word  of  God  :  it  would  have  deceived  us. 


60  OBJECTIONS. 

8.  It  is  especially  important  to  remark  here,  that  this 
fatal  system  of  an  inspiration,  gradual,  imperfect,  and 
intermittent,  arises  from  a  mistake  which  we  have  more 
than  once  found  it  necessary  to  point  out.  It  is,  that 
inspiration  has  almost  always  been  considered  as  in  the 
man  ;  whereas  it  ought  to  be  looked  for  only  in  the 
book.  It  is  "  ALL  Scripture,"  it  is  all  that  is  written, 
which  is  inspired  of  God.  We  are  not  told,  and  we 
are  not  asked,  how  God  has  done  it.  It  is  certified  to 
us,  only  that  he  has  done  it ;  and  all  that  we  are  to  be- 
lieve is  simpl3'-that,  whatever  mode  he  may  have  adopted 
for  accomplishing  it. 

The  contemplation  of  inspiration  from  this  false  point 
of  view  has  given  rise  to  the  three  following  allusions  : — 

First,  In  contemplating  inspiration  in  the  sacred  au- 
thor, it  has  been  usual  to  consider  it  in  him  as  an  ex- 
traordinary  excitement,  of  which  he  was  conscious, 
which  carried  him  out  of  himself;  which  animated 
him,  after  the  manner  of  the  ancient  Pythons,  by  a  di- 
vine afflatus,  or  poetic  fire,  easily  recognized  ;  so  that 
\vhere  the  words  are  simple,  calm,  familiar,  they  must 
no  longer  be  attributed  to  inspiration. 

Again  ;  by  regarding  theopneusty  as  in  the  persons, 
they  have  been  naturally  led  to  attribute  to  it  different 
degrees  of  perfection  ;  because  they  knew  that  the  sa- 
cred writers  themselves  have  received  very  different 
measures  of  illumination  and  of  holiness.  But  if  you 
regard  inspiration  as  in  the  book,  rather  than  in  the 
man,  then  you  will  perceive  that  it  cannot  admit  of  de- 
grees. A  word  is  of  God,  or  it  is  not  of  God.  If  it  is 
of  God,  it  is  not  so  in  two  different  modes.  Whatever 
may  have  been  the  spiritual  condition  of  the  writer,  if 
all  his  writings  are  divinely  mspired,  all  his  words  are 


INDIVIDUALITY.  61 

of  God.  And  it  is  on  this  principle,  (mark  it  well,) 
that  a  Christian  will  hesitate  no  more  than  Christ,  to 
place  the  writings  of  Solomon  by  (he  side  of  those  of 
Moses  ;  or  those  of  Mark  or  of  Matthew,  by  the  side  of 
those  of  the  disciple  whom  Jesus  loved  ;  yea,  by  the 
side  of  even  the  words  of  the  Son  of  God.  They  are 
all  of  God. 

Finally,  by  a  third  illusion  ;  in  considering  the  in- 
spiration as  in  the  writers,  instead  of  seeing  it  in  the 
writings,  it  has  naturally  been  thought  absurd  to  sup- 
pose that  God  miraculously  revealed  to  a  man  that 
which  this  man  already  knew.  This  has  led  to  a  denial 
of  the  inspiration  of  those  passages  in  which  the  sacred 
writers  have  merely  recounted  what  they  have  seen,  or 
have  written  sentences  which  any  man  of  sense  could 
have  uttered  without  the  aid  of  inspiration.  But  the 
case  is  totally  changed,  when  inspiration  is  regarded  as 
belonging  to  that  which  is  written  ;  for  then  every  thing 
will  be  recognized  as  written  by  Divine  dictation ; 
whether  it  be  what  the  writer  already  knew,  or  that  of 
which  he  was  ignorant.  Who  does  not  perceive,  for 
example,  that  the  case  in  which  I  should  dictate  to  a 
student  a  book  of  geometry,  is  very  different  from  the 
case  in  which,  after  having  more  or  less  instructed  him 
in  the  sciences,  I  should  request  him  to  compose  one 
under  my  supervision.  In  the  latter  case  he  would, 
doubtless,  have  need  of  me  only  for  difficult  proposi- 
tions ;  but  then  too,  who  would  think  of  saying  that  the 
book  was  mine  ?  In  the  other  case,  on  the  contrary, 
all  the  parts  of  the  book,  easy  or  difficult,  would  be 
mine  ;  from  the  quadrature  of  transcendental  curves, 
even  to  the  theory  of  the  straight  line  or  of  the  triangle. 
Now,  such  is  the  Bible.  It  is  not,  as  some  have  said, 
6 


<6@  OBJECTIONS. 

a  book  which  God  has  charged  men,  already  enlight- 
ened, to  make,  under  his  protection  It  is  a  book  which 
God  dictated  to  them  ;  it  is  the  word  of  God  ;  the  Spirit 
of  the  Lord  hath  spoken  by  its  authors,  and  his  words 
were  upon  their  tongue. 

9.  That  a  child  may  know  that  the  style  of  David, 
of  St.  Luke,  or  St.  John,  can  be,  at  the  same  time,  the 
style  of  God. 

If  some  modern  French  author,  at  the  beginning  of 
the  century,  in  order  to  render  hiinself  popular,  had 
imitated  the  style  of  Chateaubriand,  could  it  not  have 
been  said,  with  equal  truth,  although  in  two  different 
senses,  that  the  style  was  his  while  yet  it  was  Chateau- 
briand's ?  If  God  himself,  in  order  to  save  the  French 
nation  from  a  frightful  explosion,  by  introducing  the 
Gospel  among  them,  should  deign  to  send  some  prophets, 
by  whose  mouth  He  would  make  himself  heard,  they 
would  certainly  preach  in  the  French  language.  But 
then,  what  would  be  their  style,  and  what  would  you 
require  as  characteristic  of  the  style  of  God  7  God 
might  choose  that  one  of  these  prophets  should  speak 
like  Fenelon,  and  the  other  like  Bonaparte.  Then  it 
would  be,  in  a  certain  sense,  the  pithy,  barking,  jerking 
style  of  the  great  general :  it  would  be  again,  and  in 
he  same  sense,  the  flowing  style,  the  sustained  and  wire- 
Ira  wn  period  of  the  priest  of  Cambray  ;  but,  in  another 
'.ense,  more  elevated  and  more  true,  it  would  be,  in  the 
one  and  in  the  other  of  these  two  mouths,  the  style  of 
God,  the  periods  of  God,  the  manner  of  God,  the  word 
of  God.  God  could,  without  doubt,  every  time  he  re- 
vealed his  will,  have  uttered,  from  the  highest  heavens, 
a  voice  as  glorious  as  that  which  shook  the  rocky  Sinai, 


INDIVIDUALITY.  63 

OT  that  which  was  heard  on  the  banks  of  the  Jordan.* 
He  could  have  deputed  no  less  than  the  angels  of  light. 
But  then,  what  languages  would  they  have  spoken  ? 
Those  of  the  earth,  evidently.  If  then,  in  speaking  to 
men  on  the  earth,  he  must  adopt  the  words  and  the  con- 
struction of  the  Hebrews  and  the  Greeks,  instead  of  the 
syntax  of  the  heavens  and  the  vocabulary  of  archangels; 
why  should  he  not  also  equally  have  borrowed  their 
gait,  their  style,  and  their  personality  ? 

10.  He  has  done  so,  without  doubt ;  but  do  not  think 
that  he  has  done  it  by  accident.  "  His  works  are  known 
to  him  from  the  beginning."!  See  how  he  prepares 
with  prospective  wisdom,  the  leaf  of  a  tree,  wrapped 
first  in  its  little  case  ;  then  gradually  unfolding,  to  drink 
the  rays  of  light  and  breathe  the  vital  air,  while  the 
roots  send  up  to  it  their  nourishing  juices.  But  his 
wisdom  has  looked  and  provided  still  further ;  it  has 
prepared  this  leaf  for  that  coming  day,  when  it  may 
nourish  the  worms  which  are  to  burst  their  silky  cover- 
ing and  spin  their  thread  upon  its  branches.  See  how 
he  prepared,  first  a  gourd  for  the  place  and  for  the  time 
when  and  where  Jonas  was  to  come  and  sit  down  on 
the  east  of  Nineveh ;  and  afterwards  a  destructive 
worm  for  the  next  morning,  when  this  gourd  should 
wither  ; — ^just  too,  as  when  he  would  proceed  to  the 
most  important  of  his  works,  and  cause  to  be  written 
this  prophecy  which  is  to  outlive  the  heavens  and  the 
earth  ;  the  eternal  God  knew  how  to  prepare,  long  be- 
forehand, each  one  of  his  prophets  for  the  moment  and 
for  the  testimony  to  which  he  had  destined  him  from  eter- 
nity. He  has  chosen  them,  one  after  the  other,  for  their 
respective  offices,  from  among  all  the  men  born  of  wo- 

*  Exod.  xi.x.    John  xii.  29.  t  Acts  xv.  18. 


64  OBJECTIONS. 

men ;  and  he  has  perfectly  accomplished  in  respect  to 
them,  this  word :  "  Send,  oh  Lord,  whom  thou  wilt 
send."* 

As  a  skilful  musician,  who  has  to  execute  alone  a  longf 
score,  will  avail  himself  by  turns,  of  the  funereal  flute, 
the  shepherd's  pipe,  the  dancer's  bagpipe  or  the  war- 
rior's trumpet ;  thus  the  Almighty  God,  to  proclaim  to 
us  his  eternal  word,  has  chosen  of  old,  the  instruments 
into  which  he  would  successively  breathe  the  breath  of 
his  Spirit.  "  He  chose  them  before  the  foundation  of  the 
world  ;  he  separated  them  from  their  mother's  womb."t 

Have  you  visited  the  Cathedral  of  Freyburg,  and 
listened  to  that  Avonderful  organist,  who,  with  such  en- 
chantment, draws  the  tears  from  the  traveler's  eyes  ; 
while  he  touches,  one  after  another,  his  wonderful  keys, 
and  makes  you  hear  by  turns,  the  march  of  armies 
upon  the  beach,  or  the  chanted  prayer  upon  the  lake 
during  the  tempest,  or  the  voices  of  praise  after  it  is 
calm?  All  your  senses  are  overwhelmed,  for  it  has 
all  passed  before  you  like  a  vivid  reality.  Well,  thus 
the  Eternal  God,  powerful  in  harmony,  touches  by  turns 
with  the  fingers  of  his  Spirit,  the  keys  which  he  had 
chospn  for  the  hour  of  his  design,  and  for  the  unity  of 
his  celestial  hymn.  He  had  before  him,  from  eternity, 
all  the  human  keys ;  his  creating  eyes  embraced  at  a 
glance,  this  key-board  of  sixty  centuries  ;  and  when  he 
would  make  this  fallen  world  hear  the  eternal  counsel 
of  its  redemption  and  the  advent  of  the  Son  of  God,  he 
laid  his  left  hand  on  Enoch  the  seventh  from  Adam,J 
and  his  right  hand  on  John,  the  humble  and  sublime 
prisoner  of  Patmos.  The  celestial  hymn,  seven  hun- 
dred years  before  the  deluge,  began  with  these  words  : 

•  Ex.  iv.  13.  t  Gal.  i.  15.     Eph.  i.  4.  J  Jude,  14. 


INDIVIDUALITY.  65 

"  Behold,  the  Lord  comcth  with  ten  thousand  of  his 
saints,  to  judge  the  world  ;"  but  already  in  the  thought 
of  God  and  in  the  eternal  harmony  of  Jiis  work,  the 
voice  of  John  was  responding  to  that  of  Enoch,  and 
terminating  the  hymn,  three  thousand  years  after  him, 
with  these  words  :  "  Behold,  he  cometh,  and  every  eye 
shall  see  him,  yea,  those  that  pierced  him  !  even  so.  Lord 
Jesus,  come  quickly,  amen  !"  And  during  this  hymn 
of  three  thousand  years,  the  Spirit  of  God  did  not  cease 
to  breathe  upon  all  his  ambassadors  ;  the  angels  stooped, 
says  an  Apostle,  to  contemplate  its  depths  ;  the  elect  of 
God  were  moved,  and  eternal  life  descended  into  their 
souls. 

Between  Enoch  and  St.  John,  hear  Jeremiah,  twenty- 
four  centuries  after  the  one,  and  seven  centuries  before 
the  other :  "  Before  I  formed  thee  in  the  belly,  I  knew 
thee,  and  before  thou  comest  forth  out  of  the  womb,  I 
sanctified  thee,  and  I  ordained  thee  a  prophet  unto  the 
nations."*  It  was  in  vain  that  this  man  in  his  fear  ex- 
claimed :  '•  Ah  Lord,  behold  I  cannot  speak,  for  I  am 
a  child  ;"  the  Lord  answered  him :  "  say  not,  I  am  a 
child ;  for,  thou  shalt  speak  all  that  I  command  thee." 
Then  the  Lord  stretched  forth  his  hand  and  touched 
his  mouth,  and  said:  "  Behold,  I  put  my  word  in  thy 
mouth." 

Between  Enoch  and  Jeremiah,  hear  Moses.  He  de- 
bates too,  upon  Mount  Horeb,  against  the  Lord's  appeal : 
"  Alas,  Lord,  I  am  a  man  slow  of  speech  ;  send  rather 
I  pray  thee,  by  whom  thou  wilt  send."t  But  the  anger 
of  the  Lord  burns  against  Moses :  "  Who  hath  made 
man's  mouth  ?  Now  therefore  go,  and  I  will  be  with 
thy  mouth,  and  teach  thee  what  thou  shalt  say." 

•  Jer.  i.  5,  6,  7.  t  Ex.  iv.  10. 

6* 


66  OBJECTIONS. 

Between  Jeremiah  and  St.  John,  hear  Saul  of  Tarsus : 

"  When  it  pleased  God,  who  hath  separated  me  from 
my  mother's  womb  and  called  me  by  his  grace,  to  re- 
veal his  Son  in  me,  that  I  might  preach  him  among  the 
heathen."* 

'  We  see  then,  it  was  sometimes  the  sublime  and  untu- 
tored simplicity  of  John  ;  sometimes  the  excited,  ellip- 
tical, startling,  argumentative  energy  of  Paul ;  some- 
times the  fervor  and  solemnity  of  Peter  ;  it  was  the 
majestic  poetry  of  Isaiah,  or  the  lyrical  poetry  of  David  ; 
it  was  the  simple  and  majestic  narrative  of  Moses,  or 
the  sententious  and  royal  wisdom  of  Solomon  ] — yes,  it 
was  all  that ;  it  was  Peter  ;  it  was  Isaiah  ;  it  was  Mat- 
thew ;  it  was  John  ;  it  was  Moses  ;  but  it  was  God  ! 

"  Are  not  these  men  who  speak  to  us,  all,  Galileans  ?" 
cried  one  on  the  day  of  Pentecost.  Yes,  they  are  ;  but 
the  word  upon  their  lips  comes  from  another  country, 
it  is  from  heaven.  Hear  it ;  for  the  tongues  of  fire 
have  come  down  upon  their  heads,  and  it  is  God  who 
speaks  to  you  by  their  mouth. 

11.  Finally;  we  v/ould  show  that  this  human  per- 
sonality which  is  pointed  out  to  us  in  the  Scriptures; 
so  far  from  leaving  any  stain  there,  or  from  being  an 
infirmity ;  on  the  contrary,  impresses  a  divine  beauty 
on  the  sacred  page,  and  powerfully  proves  to  us  its  theo- 
pneusty. 

Yes,  we  have  said  it ;  it  is  God  who  there  speaks  to 
us  ;  but  it  is  also  man  ;  it  is  man,  but  it  is  also  God, 
Admirable  word  of  God  !  It  has  been  made  human 
in  its  way,  like  the  eternal  Word  !  Yes,  God  has 
caused  it  thus  to  stoop  even  to  us,  full  of  grace  and  truth, 
like  our  words,  in  eveiy  thing  but  error  and  sin.     Ad- 

•  Gal.  i.  15. 


INDIVIDUALITY.  67 

mirable  word ;  divine,  but  full  of  humanity ;  amiable 
word  of  my  God !  Yes,  it  must,  in  order  to  be  under- 
stood by  us,  place  itself  on  mortal  lips  and  recite  human 
things  ;  and  to  charm  us,  must  put  on  the  features  of 
our  thoughts  and  all  the  tones  of  our  voice,  because 
God  knows  well  of  what  we  are  made.  But  we  have 
recognized  it  as  the  word  of  the  Lord,  powerful,  effica- 
cious, sharper  than  any  two-edged  sword  ;  and  the  most 
simple  among  us,  have  been  able  to  say  in  hearing  it, 
like  Cleopas  and  his  friend  :  "  did  not  our  hearts  burn 
within  us  while  he  talked  with  us  ?" 

With  what  a  powerful  charm  the  Scriptures,  by  this 
abundance  of  humanity,  and  by  all  this  personality 
which  clothes  their  divinity,  remind  us  that  the  Lord  of 
our  souls,  whose  touching  voice  they  are,  himself  bears 
a  human  heart  upon  the  throne  of  God,  although  seated 
in  the  highest  places,  where  the  angels  can  serve  and 
adore  him  !  By  this  too,  they  present  to  us,  not  only 
this  double  character  of  variety  and  unity  Avhich  at  once 
so  embellishes  and  distinguishes  all  the  other  works  of 
God,  as  creator  of  the  heavens  and  the  earth,  but  also 
that  union  of  fomiliarity  and  authority,  of  sympathy 
and  grandeur,  of  practical  detail  and  mysterious  ma- 
jesty, of  humanity  and  divinity,  which  we  recognize  in 
all  the  dispensations  of  the  same  God,  as  the  Redeemer 
and  Shrpherd  of  his  Church. 

It  is  then  thus  that  the  Father  of  mercies,  in  speaking 
in  his  prophets,  has  had  not  only  to  employ  their  man- 
ner as  well  as  their  voice,  and  their  style  as  well  as  their 
pen,  but  also  often  to  enlist  in  it  all  their  faculties  of 
tho'jo:ht  and  feelinnf.  Sometimes  in  order  to  show  us 
his  divine  sympathy,  he  has  thought  proper  to  associate 
their  personal  reminiscences,  their  own  experiences  and 


68  OBJECTIONS. 

their  pious  emotions  witii  the  words  which  he  was  dic- 
tating to  them.  Sometimes,  in  order  to  remind  us  of 
his  sovereign  interference,  he  has  preferred  to  dispense 
with  this  unessential  concurrence  of  their  memories, 
their  affections  and  their  understandings. 

So  ought  the  word  of  God  to  be. 

Like  Emmanuel,  full  of  grace  and  truth  ;  at  once,  in 
the  bosom  of  God  and  in  the  heart  of  man;  powerful 
and  sympathetic,  celestial  and' of  the  earth,  sublime  and 
humiliated,  imposing  and  familiar,  God  and  man  !  It 
does  not  then  resemble  the  God  of  the  rationalists.  Af- 
ter having,  like  the  disciples  of  Epicurus,  removed  the 
Deity  very  far  from  man,  and  into  the  third  heaven,  they 
have  wished  the  Bible  to  put  him  there  too.  "  Philo- 
sophy," said  the  too  celebrated  Strauss  of  Louisburg. 
"  employs  the  language  of  the  gods  ;  whilst  religion 
employs  the  language  of  men.'"  Yes,  doubtless,  it  does ; 
it  assumes  no  other  ;  it  leaves  to  philosophers  and  the 
gods  of  this  world,  their  empyrium  and  their  language. 

Studied  under  this  aspect,  and  considered  by  this  char- 
acter, the  word  of  God  shows  itself  without  a  parallel ; 
it  has  unequalled  attractions ;  it  offers  to  the  men  of 
every  age,  place  and  condition,  beauties  ahvays  new,  a 
charm  which  does  not  grow  old,  which  ever  satisfies 
and  never  satiates.  In  direct  contrast  with  human 
books,  it  not  only  pleases  you,  it  increases  in  beauty,  ex- 
tent and  elevation  of  meaning,  in  proportion  as  you  read 
it  more  assiduously.  It  seems  that  the  book,  the  more 
you  study  and  re-study  it,  grows  and  expands,  and  that 
an  invisible  and  benevolent  Being  comes  daily  to  sew 
in  it  some  new  leaves !  This  is  the  reason  why  the 
souls  of  the  learned  and  the  unlearned,  who  have  lono* 

o 

been  nourished  by  it,  equally  hang  upon  it,  just  as  those 


INDIVIDUALITY.  69 

once  did  on  the  lips  of  Christ,  who  are  mentioned  by 
Luke.*  They  all  find  it  incomparable  ;  sometimes 
powerful  as  the  noise  of  mighty  waters,  sometimes  ami- 
able and  sweet  as  the  voice  of  the  bride  to  her  bride- 
groom ;  but  always  "  perfect,  always  restoring  the  soul, 
and  making  wise  the  simple."! 

To  what  book,  in  this  respect,  would  you  compare 
it?  Would  you  place  by  its  side,  the  discourses  of 
Plato  or  of  Seneca,  of  Aristotle,  or  St.  Simon,  or  Rous- 
seau ?  Have  you  read  the  books  of  Mohammed? 
Listen  to  him  for  one  hour.  Under  the  pressure  of  his 
piercing  and  monotonous  voice,  your  ears  Vv'ill  tingle. 
From  the  first  page  to  the  last,  it  is  always  the  cry  of 
the  same  trumpet,  always  the  cornet  of  Medina  sound- 
ing from  the  top  of  the  minaret  of  a  mosque  or  from  the 
back  of  a  war-camel ;  always  a  sybilline  oracle,  sharp 
and  hard,  in  a  continued  strain  of  commandment  and 
threat ;  whether  he  ordains  virtue  or  commands  mur- 
der ;  always  one  and  the  same  voice,  sharp  and  roaring, 
without  compassion,  without  familiarity,  without  tears, 
without  soul,  without  sympathy. 

If  after  reading  other  books,  you  feel  religious  wants, 
open  the  Bible  ;  hear  it.  They  are  sometimes  indeed 
the  songs  of  angels,  but  of  angels  come  down  among 
the  sons  of  Adam. 

They  are  the  organs  of  the  Most  High  ;  but  they 
come  to  charm  the  heart  of  man  and  to  move  his  con- 
science ;  in  the  cabin  of  the  shepherd,  as  in  the  palace  ; 
in  the  garrets  of  the  poor,  as  in  the  tents  of  the  desert. 

The  Bible,  in  fact,  instructs  all  conditions  ;  it  brings 
on  the  stage,  the  humble  and  the  great :  it  reveals  to 
them  equally  the  love  of  God,  and  exposes  in  them  the 

*  Ch.  xix.  48.    6  Xa6s  S.TTag  i^eKpenaro.  t  Ps.  xix.  7. 


70  OBJECTIONS. 

same  miseries.  It  addresses  children;  and  they  are 
often  children  who  there  show  us  the  way  to  heaven, 
and  the  greatness  of  the  Lord.  It  addresses  herdsmen ; 
and  they  are  often  herdsmen  who  there  speak  and  re- 
veal to  us  the  character  of  God.  It  speaks  to  kings 
ind  to  scribes ;  and  they  are  often  kings  and  scribes 
who  there  teach  us  the  miseries  of  man,  humility,  con- 
fession and  prayer.  Domestic  scenes,  avowals  of  the 
conscience,  secret  effusions  of  prayer,  travels,  proverbs, 
revelations  of  the  depths  of  the  heart,  the  holy  career 
of  a  child  of  God,  weaknesses  unveiled,  falls,  revivings, 
intimate  experiences,  parables,  familiar  letters,  theolo- 
gical treatises,  sacred  commentaries  on  some  ancient 
Scripture,  national  chronicles,  military  pageants,  politi- 
cal censuses,  descriptions  of  God ;  portraits  of  angels, 
celestial  visions,  practical  counsels,  rules  of  life,  solu- 
tions of  cases  of  conscience,  judgments  of  the  Lord,  sa- 
cred songs,  predictions  of  the  future,  accounts  of  the 
days  which  preceded  our  creation,  sublime  odes,  inimi- 
table poetry ;  all  this  is  found  in  turn ;  and  all  this  is 
there  exposed  to  our  view,  in  a  variety  full  of  charm, 
and  in  a  whole,  whose  majesty  is  captivating  as  that  of 
a  temple. 

It  is  thus  the  Bible  must  from  its  first  page  to  its  last, 
associate  with  its  majestic  unity,  the  indefinable  charm 
of  an  instruction,  human,  familiar,  sympathising,  per- 
sonal, and  with  a  drama  of  forty  centuries.  "  There 
are,"  it  is  said  in  the  Bible  of  Desmarets,  "  shallows, 
where  a  lamb  may  wade,  and  deep  waters,  Avhere  an 
elephant  may  swim." 

But  mark  at  the  same  time,  the  peculiar  unity,  and 
the  numberless  and  profound  harmonies  in  this  immense 
variety!'   Under  all  these  forms  it  is  always  the  same 


INDmDUALITY.  7 1 

truth  ;  always  man  lost,  and  God  the  Savior ;  aiwaj^^s 
the  first  Adam  with  his  race  leaving  Eden  and  losing 
life,  and  the  second  Adam  with  his  people  reentering 
Paradise,  and  finding  again  the  tree  of  life  ;  always  the 
same  appeal  in  a  thousand  tones  :  "  Oh  heart  of  man. 
return  to  thy  God ;  for  thy  God  pardons.  Thou  art  in 
the  abyss ;  come  up  from  it ;  a  Savior  has  descended 
into  it — he  gives  holiness  and  life  !" 

"  Can  a  book  at  once  so  sublime  and  so  simple,  be 
the  work  of  man  ?"  inquired  a  too  celebrated  philoso- 
pher of  the  last  century  ;  and  every  page  has  answered  ; 
no,  impossible  ;  for,  every  where,  through  so  many 
ages,  and  whichever  of  the  sacred  writers  holds  the 
pen,  king  or  shepherd,  scribe  or  fisherman,  priest  or 
publican,  every  where  you  recognize  that  the  same 
author,  at  an  interval  of  a  thousand  years,  and  that  the 
same  eternal  Spirit  has  conceived  and  dictated  every 
thing ,  every  where,  in  Babylon  as  at  Horeb,  in  Jeru- 
salem as  in  Athens,  in  Rome  as  in  Patmos,  you  find 
described  the  same  God,  the  same  world,  the  same  men, 
the  same  angels,  the  same  future,  the  same  heaven. 
Every  where,  whether  it  be  a  historian  or  a  ])oet  who 
speaks  to  you  ;  whether  on  the  plains  of  the  desert  in 
the  age  of  Pharoah,  or  in  the  dungeon  of  the  capitol, 
in  the  age  of  the  Csesars, — every  where,  in  the  Avorld, 
the  same  ruin :  in  man,  the  same  condemnation  and 
impotence  ;  in  the  angels,  the  same  elevation,  innocence 
and  charity  ;  in  heaven,  the  same  purity  and  happiness, 
the  same  meeting  together  of  truth  and  mercy,  the  same 
embrace  of  righteousness  and  peace  ;  the  same  designs 
of  a  God  who  blots  out  iniquity,  transgression  and  sin, 
and  who  will  yet  by  no  means  clear  the  guilty. 

We  conclude  then,  that  the  abundance  of  humanity 


72  OBJECTIONS. 

which  is  found  in  the  Scriptures,  far  from  compromising 
their  Theopneusty,  is  but  another  indication  of  their  di- 
vinity. 

SECTION  II. 

T%e  Translations. 

We  come  to  the  second  objection  : — 

"  You  are  sure,  that  the  inspiration  of  the  Scriptures  extends 
even  to  the  words  of  the  original  text ;  but  of  what  use  is  this 
verbal  exactness  of  the  holy  word  ;  since  after  all,  the  greater  part 
of  Christians  must  use  only  the  more  or  less  inaccurate  versions  1 
The  privilege  of  such  an  inspiration  is  then  lost  to  the  modern 
Church  ;  for  you  will  not  go  so  far  as  to  say  that  any  translation 
is  inspired," 

We  have  felt  at  first  some  repugnance  to  presenting 
this  objection,  on  account  of  its  insignificance  :  but  it 
must  be  noticed,  since  we  are  told  that  it  is  fi'equently 
repeated,  and  that  it  is  well  received  among  us. 

The  first  remark  to  be  made  on  this  objection,  is,  that 
it  is  not  an  objection.  It  is  not  raised  against  \h.%  fact 
of  the  verbal  inspiration  of  the  Scriptures,  but  against 
its  advantage.  So  far  as  respects  the  majority  of  readers, 
it  says  :  the  benefit  of  such  an  interference  of  God 
would  be  lost,  since,  instead  of  the  infallible  words  of 
the  original,  they  can  have  only  the  fallible  words  of  a 
translation.  But  wc  are  not  at  liberty  to  deny  a  fact, 
because  we  cannot  at  once  perceive  all  its  advantages  ; 
and  we  are  not  permitted  to  reject  a  doctrine,  merely 
because  we  cannot  perceive  its  utility.  All  the  expres- 
sions, for  instance,  and  all  the  letters  of  the  ten  com- 
mandments  were  certainly  written  by  the  finger  of  God, 
from  the  Aleph  which  commences,  to  the  Cajjh  which 
closes  them.     Yet  would  any  one  dare  to  say  that  the 


TRANSLATIONS.  73 

credibility  of  this  miraculous  fact  is  impaired  by  the 
necessity  which  the  majority  of  unlearned  readers  now 
find,  of  reading  the  decalogue  in  some  translation  ?  No 
one  would  dare  to  say  it.  We  must  then  observe 
that  this  objection,  without  attacking  directly  the  doc- 
trine which  we  defend,  brings  into  dispute  only  its  ad- 
vantages ;  they  are  lost  as  to  us,  it  is  said,  by  the  work 
of  the  translator  ;  they  disappear  in  this  metamorphosis. 

We  are  going  then  to  show  how  even  this  assertion, 
when  reduced  to  its  last  terms,  is  also  without  foundation. 

The  divine  word,  which  the  Bible  reveals  to  us, 
passes  through  four  successive  forms,  before  arriving  to 
us  in  a  translation.  It  was  first,  from  all  eternity,  in 
the  mind  of  God.  Then,  he  placed  it  in  the  mind  of 
man.  Then,  under  the  operation  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
and  by  a  mysterious  translation  from  the  mind  of  the 
Prophet  into  the  moulds  and  symbols  of  an  articulate 
language,  it  there  assumed  the  form  of  words.  Finally, 
when  it  had  undergone  this  first  translation,  as  impor- 
tant as  inexplicable,  man  reproduced  and  transferred  it 
by  a  new  translation,  in  copying  it  from  one  human 
language  into  another.  Of  these  four  operations,  the 
first  three  are  divine ;  the  fourth  alone  is  human  and 
fallible.  Will  any  one  say,  because  it  is  human,  the 
divinity  of  the  other  three  is  to  us  a  matter  of  indifl^er- 
ence*?  At  the  same  time,  observe,  that  between  the 
third  and  the  fourth,  I  mean  between  the  first  transla- 
tion of  the  thought  by  the  sensible  signs  of  a  human 
language,  and  the  second  translation  of  the  words  by 
other  words,  the  difference  is  immense.  Between  the 
doubts  which  we  may  entertain  upon  the  exactness  of 
the  translations,  and  those  which  would  oppress  us,  as 
to  the  accuracy  of  the  original  text^  if  it  were  not  lit- 
7 


74  OBJECTIONS. 

erally  inspired,  the  distance  is  infinite.  You  say; 
"  Wliat  difference  does  it  make  to  me,  that  the  third 
operation  is  produced  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  if  the  last 
is  effected  only  by  the  human  intellect  ?  In  other  words, 
of  what  avail  is  it  to  me  that  the  primitive  language  is 
inspired,  if  the  versions  are  not?"  But  you  forget,  in 
speaking  thus,  that  we  are  infinitely  more  assured  of 
the  exactness  of  the  translators,  than  we  could  be  of  that 
of  the  original  text,  provided  all  the  expressions  in  it 
were  not  from  God. 

Of  this  we  shall  be  convinced  by  the  five  following 
considerations ; 

1.  The  operation  by  which  the  sacred  writers  express 
in  words,  the  thought  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  is  itself,  as  we 
have  said,  a  translation,  not  of  words  by  other  words, 
but  of  divine  thoughts  by  sensible  symbols.  Now,  this 
first  translation  is  infinitely  more  delicate,  more  myste- 
rious, and  more  exposed  to  error,  if  God  does  not  inter- 
fere, than  that  can  be,  by  which  we  afterwards  render 
a  Greek  word  of  this  primitive  text  by  an  equivalent 
word  in  French  or  English.  In  order  that  a  man  may 
express  exactly  the  thought  of  God,  he  must,  if  not 
aided  from  on  high  in  his  language,  have  entirely  seized  it 
in  its  full  measure,  and  in  all  the  extent  and  depth  of  its 
meaning.  But  this  is  not  the  case  with  a  mere  transla- 
tion. The  divine  thought  having  already  become  in- 
carnate in  the  language  of  the  sacred  text,  the  object  in 
translating,  is  no  longer  to  give  it  a  body,  but  only  to 
change  its  dress  ;  to  make  it  say  in  English  or  French 
what  it  said  in  Greek,  and  modestly  to  replace  each  one 
of  its  words  by  an  equivalent  one. 

It  is  comparatively  a  very  inferior  process,  very  ma- 
terial, without  mystery,  and  infinitely  less  subject  to 


TRANSLATIONS.  75 

error  than  the  former.  It  requires  in  fact  so  little  spir- 
ituality, that  an  honest  pagan  can  accomplish  it  per- 
fectly^ if  he  possesses  perfectly  the  knowledge  of  the 
two  languages.  The  version  of  an  educated  rationalist, 
who  confined  himself  to  the  simple  labor  of  translation, 
would  afford  us  more  security  than  that  of  an  orthodox 
believer  who  allowed  himself  to  paraphrase,  who  at- 
tempted to  complete  the  sense  of  the  text,  and  who  en- 
deavored to  present  truth  more  clearly  in  his  own  lan- 
ofuage  than  it  was  found  in  the  Greek  or  Hebrew 
original.  And  let  not  this  assertion  excite  surprise  ;  it 
is  justified  by  fact.  At  the  present  day,  in  Germany, 
is  not  the  translation  by  De  Wette  esteemed  above  that 
of  the  great  Luther?  Is  it  not  felt  that  there  is  more 
likelihood  of  possessing  the  thought  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
in  the  lines  of  the  professor  of  Basle  than  in  those  of 
the  Reformer,  because  the  former  has  adhered  closely 
to  the  expressions  of  his  text,  as  a  scholar  subject  to  the 
laws  of  philology,  while  the  other  has  seemed  to  seek 
after  something  more,  and  has  written  rather  as  an  in- 
terpreter than  as  a  translator  ?  The  more  you  reflect 
on  this  first  consideration,  the  more  the  difference  of 
these  two  orders  of  translation  must  appear  incommen- 
surable.*  It  must  not  then  be  said;  what  good  can  it 
do  me  that  the  one  is  divine,  if  the  other  is  human? 

2.  A  second  characteristic  by  which  we  can  recognise 
the  difference  of  these  two  operations,  and  by  which  the 
work  of  translation  will  be  seen  to  be  infinitely  less 
liable  to  error  than  the  original  text  would  be,  if  unin- 
spired, is,  that,  whilst  the  labor  of  our  translations  is 

*  I  mean  ;  the  difference  between  the  translation  of  the  divine  thoughts 
into  the  words  of  a  human  language,  and  the  translation  of  these  same 
wordt<  i«to  the  equivalent  terms  ef  another  language. 


76  OBJECTIONS. 

performed  by  a  great  number  of  men  of  every  tongue 
and  country,  who  have  been  able  to  consecrate  to  it  all 
their  time  and  all  their  care ;  who  have  from  age  to 
age,  been  criticising  one  another :  who  have  mutually 
instructed  and  improved  each  other  ;  the  original  text, 
on  the  contrary,  must  have  been  written  at  a  given  mo- 
ment^ and  by  one  ma^i  alorie.  No  one  was  with  that 
man  but  his  God,  to  correct  him  if  he  erred,  to  improve 
his  expressions,  if  he  chose  those  which  were  imperfect. 
If  then  God  has  not  done  it,  no  one  can  have  done  it. 
And  if  this  man  has  badly  expressed  the  thought  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  he  has  not  had,  as  our  translators  have 
had,  friends  to  point  out  his  errors,  predecessors  to  guide 
him,  nor  successors  to  correct  him,  nor  months,  years, 
ages  to  revise  and  complete  his  work.  It  is  made  by 
one  solitary  man,  and  it  is  made  once  and  forever.  We 
see  then  again,  by  this  view,  how  much  more  necessary 
the  intervention  of  the  Holy  Spirit  was  to  the  original 
writers  of  the  Bible,  than  to  their  translators. 

3.  A  third  consideration  which  should  also  lead  us 
to  the  same  conclusions,  is,  that  whilst  all  the  translators 
of  the  Scriptures  have  been  literary  men,  laborious,  and 
versed  in  the  study  of  language  ;  the  sacred  authors,  on 
the  contrary,  were,  for  the  most  part,  ignorant  men, 
without  literary  cultivation,  unaccustomed  to  write  their 
own  language,  and  by  that  alone  exposed,  if  not  guided 
infallibly  in  expressing  the  divine  revelation,  to  give  us 
a  defective  representation  of  an  infallible  thought. 

4.  A  fourth  consideration  full  of  force,  and  which 
will  make  us  feel  more  sensibly  still,  the  immense  dif- 
ference between  the  sacred  writers  and  their  translators  ; 
is  that,  whereas  the  thought  of  God  passed  like  a  flash 
of  lightning  from  heaven  across  the  mind  of  the  pro- 


TRANSLATIONS.  77 

phet ;  whereas  this  thought  can  no  more  be  found  any- 
where upon  *he  earth,  except  in  the  rapid  expression 
which  was  then  given  it  by  the  prophet ;  whereas,  if  he 
has  spoken  badly,  you  know  not  where  to  look  for  his 
prototype,  that  in  it  you  may  find  the  thought  of  God 
in  its  purity  ;  whereas,  if  he  erred,  his  error  is  forever 
irreparable,  it  must  endure  longer  than  the  heaven  and 
the  earth,  it  has  stained  remedilessly  the  eternal  book, 
and  no  human  being  can  correct  it ; — it  is  totally  other- 
wise with  the  translations.  They,  on  the  contrary,  have 
always  there,  by  their  side,  the, divine  text,  to  be  cor- 
rected and  re-corrected  from  this  eternal  type,  until  they 
shall  become  entirely  conformed  to  it.  The  inspired 
word  does  not  leave  us ;  we  have  not  to  go  and  seek 
for  it  in  the  third  heavens  ;  it  is  still  here  upon  the 
earth,  such  as  God  primitively  dictated  it.  You  may 
then  study  it  for  ages,  to  submit  to  its  unchangeable 
truth,  the  human  work  of  our  translation.  You  can 
to-day,  correct  the  versions  of  Osterwald  and  Martin, 
after  a  hundred  and  thirty  years,  by  bringing  them  more 
rigidly  to  their  infallible  standard  ;  after  three  hundred 
and  seventeen  years,  you  may  correct  the  work  of  Lu- 
ther ;  after  fourteen  hundred  and  forty  years,  that  of 
Jerome.  The  phraseology  of  God  remaining  always 
there,  before  our  human  versions,  such  as  God  himself 
dictated  it,  in  Hebrew  or  in  Greek,  in  the  day  of  the 
revelation  ;  and,  our  dictionaries  in  your  hand,  you  can 
return  there  and  examine,  from  age  to  age,  the  infillible 
expression  which  he  was  pleased  to  give  to  his  divine 
thought,  until  you  are  assured  that  the  language  of  the 
moderns,  has  truly  received  the  exact  impression  of  it, 
and  has  given  you,  for  your  use,  the  most  faithful  fac- 
simile of  it.  Say  no  more  then  ;  of  what  use  is  a 
7* 


78  OBJECTIONS. 

divine  revelation  to  me,  if  I  must  use  a  human  transla- 
tion? If  you  wanted  a  bust  of  Napoleon,  would  you 
say  to  the  sculptor,  of  what  use  is  it  to  me  that  your 
model  has  been  moulded  at  St.  Helena  upon  the  very 
face  of  Bonaparte  ;  since,  after  all,  it  will  be  but  your 
copy? 

5.  Finally,  that  which  distinguishes  still  the  first  ex- 
pression of  the  divine  thought  in  the  words  of  the  sa- 
cred book,  from  its  new  expression  in  one  of  our  trans- 
lations, is  that,  if  you  suppose  the  words  of  the  one  as 
little  inspired  as  those  of  the  other ;  yet  the  field  of  the 
conjectures  which  you  might  make  upon  their  possible 
fauhs,  would  be,  as  to  the  original  text,  a  boundless 
space,  ever  expanding  ;  whereas  the  same  field,  as  to 
the  translations,  is  a  very  limited  space,  always  dimin- 
ishing as  you  traverse  it. 

If  some  friend,  returning  from  the  East  Indies,  where 
your  father  had  breathed  his  last,  far  from  you,  should 
bring  from  him  a  last  letter  written  with  his  own  hand, 
or  dictated  by  him,  word  for  word,  in  the  Bengalese 
language ;  would  it  be  to  you  a  matter  of  no  import- 
ance that  this  letter  was  entirely  his  ;  simply  because 
you  were  ignorant  of  that  language,  and  because  you 
can  read  it  only  through  a  translation  ?  Do  you  not 
know  that  you  can  multiply  translations  of  it,  until  there 
shall  remain  no  doubt  that  you  comprehend  it  just  as 
fully  as  if  you  yourself  were  a  Hindoo  ?  Do  you  not 
admit,  that  after  each  one  of  the  new  translations,  your 
uncertainty  would  constantly  diminish,  until  it  vanished 
completely  ;  like  the  fractional  and  convergent  progres- 
sions in  arithmetic,  whose  final  terms  are  equivalent  to 
zero  ;  whereas,  on  the  contrary,  if  the  letter  did  not 
come  from  your  father  himself,  but  from  some  stranger, 


TRANSLATIONS.  79 

who  should  avow  that  he  had  only  repeated  his  thoughts, 

there  would  be  no  limit  to  your  possible  suppositions  ; 
and  your  uncertainty,  carried  into  new  and  boundless 
regions,  would  continue  to  increase,  the  more  you  re- 
ftected ;  like  the  ascending  progressions  in  arithmetic, 
whose  last  terms  represent  infinity?  Thus  it  is  with 
the  Bible.  If  I  believe  that  God  has  dictated  it  all ;  ny 
doubts,  as  to  its  translations,  are  shut  up  in  a  very  nar- 
row field  ;  and  in  this  field  too,  as  often  as  you  re-trans- 
iate  it,  the  limits  of  these  doubts  are  ahvays  diminish- 
ing. But  if  I  believe  that  God  has  not  entirel}?^  dictated 
it ;  if,  on  the  contrary,  I  am  to  believe  that  Luman  in- 
firmity may  have  had  its  part  in  the  text  of  the  Bible, 
where  shall  I  stop  in  my  supposition  of  errors  ?  I  do 
not  know.  The  Apostles,  were  ignorant,  I  must  say ; 
they  were  unlettered  ;  they  were  Jews  ;  they  had  popu- 
lar prejudices  ;  they  judaized  ;  they  platonized  ;  .  .  . 
I  know  not  where  to  stop.  I  should  begin  with  Locke, 
and  I  should  finish  with  Strauss.  I  should  first  deny 
the  personality  of  Satan,  as  a  rabbinical  prejudice  ;  and 
I  should  finish  by  denying  that  of  Christ  as  another 
prejudice.  Between  these  two  terms,  in  consequence  of 
the  ignorance  to  which  the  Apostles  were  exposed,  I 
should  come,  like  so  m.any  others,  to  admit,  notwith- 
standing the  letter  of  the  Bible,  and  with  the  Bible  in 
my  hand,  that  there  is  no  corruption  in  man,  no  per- 
sonality in  the  Holy  Spirit,  no  Deity  in  Jesus  Christ,  no- 
expiation  in  his  blood,  no  resurrection  of  the  body,  no 
eternal  punishment,  no  wrath  of  God,  no  devil,  no  mira- 
cles, no  damne'd,  no  hell.  St.  Paul  was  orthodox,  I  should 
say,  with  others  ;  but  he  did  not  rightly  understand  his 
master.  Whereas,  on  the  contrary,  if  every  thing  ia 
the  original  has  been  dictated  by  God,  even  to  the  least 


80  OBJECTIONS. 

expression,  even  to  "  a  jot  and  tittle  ;"  who  is  the  trans 
lator  that  could  by  his  labor,  lead  me  to  one  of  these 
negations,  and  make  the  least  of  these  truths  disappear 
from  my  Bible  ? 

Who  does  not  there  perceive,  at  what  an  immense 
distance  all  these  considerations  place  the  original  text 
from  the  translation,  in  respect  to  the  importance  of  ver- 
bal inspiration  !  Between  the  translation  of  the  divine 
thoughts  into  human  words,  and  the  simple  version  of 
these  words  into  other  words,  the  distance  is  as  great  as 
that  between  heaven  and  earth.  The  one  requires  God  ; 
the  other  needs  only  man.  Let  no  one  then  repeat : 
of  what  use  is  a  verbal  inspiration  in  the  one,  if  we 
have  it  not  in  the  other ;  since  between  these  two  terms, 
which  some  would  make  equivalents,  there  is  an  almost 
infinite  distance. 

SECTION  III. 

Employment  of  the  Septuagini. 
It  has  been  said  and  insisted  on  ; 

"We  agree  that  the  fact  of  modern  translations  could  not  o fleet 
in  the  least,  the  question  of  the  original  inspiration  of  the  Scrip- 
tures ;  but  the  difficulty  Kes  deeper.  The  sacred  authors  of  the 
New  Testament,  when  they  themselves  quote  the  Old  Testament, 
use  the  Greek  translation,  called  the  Scpinagint,  made  at  Alexan- 
dria, two  centuries  and  a  half  before  Jesus  Christ.  Now,  no  one 
will  dare,  among  the  modems,  to  pretend,  as  among  the  ancients, 
that  the  Alexandrian  interpreters  were  inspired.  Would  any  one 
now  dare  to  advance,  that  this  version,  still  human  in  the  days  of 
Jesus  Christ,  has  acquired,  merely  by  the  fact  of  its  citation  by  the 
Apostles,  a  divinity  which  it  had  not  originally  ?  Would  not  this 
strange  pretension  resemble  that  of  the  council  of  Trent,  declaring 
divine  the  apocryphas,  which  the  ancient  Church  rejected  from 
the  canon,  and  which  St.  Jerome  calls  "  fables,  and  a  mixture  of 


SEPTUAGINT.  O  i 

gold  and  dross  ;"*  or  declaring  authentic  the  latin  version  of  St, 
Jerome,  which  at  first  had  not  been,  for  Jerome  himself,  and  after- 
wards for  the  church,  for  more  than  a  thousand  years,  any  thing 
more  than  a  human  work;  respectable,  without  doubt,  but  imper- 
fect 1  Would  it  not  resemble  still  the  absurd  infallibility  of  Sixtus 
V,  declaring  authentic  his  edition  of  1590;  or  that  of  his  succes- 
sor Clement  VIII ;  who,  finding  the  edition  of  Sixtus  V.  intoler- 
ably incorrect,  suppressed  it  in  1592,  to  substitute  for  it  another 
very  different,  and  yet  likewise  authentic. t"' 

We  love  to  bring **up  this  difficulty;  because,  like 
many  others,  examined  more  closely,  it  changes  objec- 
tions into  arguments. 

It  is  sufficient  in  fact,  to  study  the  manner  in  which 
the  Apostles  employed  the  Septuagint,  in  order  to  recog- 
nize in  it  a  striking  index  of  the  verbal  inspiration 
which  led  them  to  write. 

If  some  modern  prophet  were  sent  by  God  to  the 
churches  of  France,  in  what  language,  do  you  think, 
he  would  quote  the  Scriptures  ?  In  French,  doubtless. 
But  from  which  version  ?  Those  of  Osterwald  and 
Martin  being  the  most  extensively  used,  he  would  pro- 
bably make  his  quotations  from  both  of  these,  whenever 
their  versions  should  appear  to  him  sufficiently  exact. 
But  likewise,  notwithstanding  our  habits  and  his,  he 
would  take  great  pains  to  alter  these  two  versions,  and 
to  translate  in  his  own  way,  as  often  as  the  thought  of 
the  original  should  appear  to  him  defectively  rendered, 

•  Caveat  omnia  apocrypha  ;  sciat  multa  his  admixta  vitiosn,  et  grandis 
esse  prudentiae  auriim  in  Into  quaerere.  Let  him  beware  of  all  aporry. 
phal  writings;  let  him  know  that  they  contain  a  great  admixture  nf  vi- 
cious things,  and  that  it  reqnirps  great  prudence  to  search  for  gold  in  the 
mud.  See  Epis.  ad  Laetani.  Prolog.  Galeat.  sive.  praefat.  ad.  111).  Regum. 
—Symbol.  Riiflini,  torn,  ix.,  p   186.     See  I.ardner,  vol.  v.  p   18—22 

tSeeKorthoU:  de  variis,  S.  Scrip,  editionibus,  p.  110  to  251.  Thomas 
James  :  Bellum  papale,  sive  Concordia,  discors  Sexti  V.,  Lend.,  1600. 
Hamilton's  Introd.  to  reading  Scrip  ,  p.  163  to  166. 


Sometimes  he  would  do  even  more.  In  order  to  make 
us  better  understand  in  what  sense  he  designed  to  apply 
such  or  such  a  passage,  he  would  paraphrase  the  quoted 
passage  ;  and  in  citing  it,  w^ould  be  confined,  neither  to 
the  letter  of  the  original  text  nor  to  that  of  the  transla- 
tions. 

That  is  precisely  what  has  been  done  in  regard  to  the 
Septuagint  by  the  writers  of  the  New  Testament. 

Although  the  universal  custom  of  the  hellenistic 
Jews  in  all  the  East,  was,  to  read  in  the  Synagogues, 
and  to  quote  in  their  discussions,  the  Septuagint  version,* 
yet  the  Apostles,  by  the  three  different  modes  of  quota- 
tion, which  they  used,  shew  us  the  independence  of  the 
spirit  that  guided  them. 

First.  When  the  Alexandrian  translation  appeared 
to  them  exact,  they  did  not  hesitate  to  gratify  the  feel- 
ings of  their  hellenistic  audiences,  and  to  quote  literally 
from  this  version. 

Secondly.  And  this  case  occurs  frequently ;  when 
they  are  not  satisfied  with  the  work  of  the  seventy,  they 
correct  it,  and  quote  from  the  original  Hebrew,  by  re- 
translating it  more  accurately. 

Thirdly.  In  fine,  when  they  wished  to  indicate  more 
clearl}'-,  the  sense  in  which  they  quote  such  or  such  a 
c^eclaration  of  the  sacred  Scriptures,  they  paraphrased 
it  in  quoting  it.  It  is  then  the  Holy  Spirit,  who,  by 
their  mouth,  quotes  himself  in  modifying  the  expres- 
sions which  he  had  formerly  dictated  to  the  prophets  of 
the  ancient  Jews.  We  may  compare,  for  instance, 
Micah  V.  2,  with  Matt.  ii.  6,  Mai.  iii.  1,  with  Matt.  xi. 
10,  Mark  i.  2,  with  Luke,  vii.  27,  &c.  &c. 

*  The  Talmud  itself  admits  of  the  translation  of  the  Scriptures,  only  in 
Greek  (Talmud  Megillah,  fol.  86.) 


SEPTUAGmT.  06 

The  learned  Home,  "in  his  introduction  to  the  Scrip- 
tures, (vol.  i.  p  503.)  has  placed  in  five  distinct  classes, 
the  quotations  from  the  Septuagint  version  of  the  Old 
Testament  by  writers  of  the  New  Testament.  We  do 
not  here  guarantee  all  his  distinctions,  nor  all  his  num- 
bers ;  but  our  readers  will  comprehend  the  force  of  our 
argument,  when  we  shall  have  told  them  that  this  writer 
counts  eighty-eight  verbal  quotations  conformed  to  the 
Alexandrian  version  :  sixty-four  others  borrowed  from 
it,  but  with  some  variation  ;  thirty-seven  which  adopt  its 
meaning,  but  change  the  language ;  sixteen  which 
translate  the  Hebrew  more  accurately  ;  and  twenty-four 
in  which  the  sacred  writers  have  paraphrased  the  Old 
Testament,  in  order  to  make  the  sense  in  which  they 
quoted  the  passage,  more  obvious. 

These  numerical  data  are  sufficient  to  show  the  inde- 
pendence exercised  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  when  he  would 
quote  from  the  Old  Testament,  to  write  the  New.  They 
then  not  only  answer  the  objection ;  they  establish  our 
doctrme. 

SECTION  IV. 

TTie  Variations. 

Other  objectors  will  say  : — 

"  We  have  no  such  difficulty,  for  it  is  evident  that  the  transla- 
tions have  nothing  to  do  with  the  question  of  the  inspiration  of  the 
original  text.  But  in  this  very  text,  there  are  numerous  differ- 
ences between  the  several  ancient  manuscripts  consulted  by  our 
churches,  and  those  on  which  the  admitted  editions  are  founded. 
Before  the  evidence  of  such  a  fact,  what  becomes  of  your  verbal 
inspiration,  and  of  what  use  can  it  be  to  us  1" 

The  answer  here  too  is  easy.  We  might  quote  al- 
ready upon  the  variations  of  the  manuscripts,  what  we 


84  OBJECTIONS. 

have  said  concerning  the  translations.  Do  not  confound 
two  kinds  of  facts  totally  distinct :  that  of  the  first  in- 
spiration of  the  Scriptures,  and  that  of  the  present  in- 
tegrity of  the  copies  made  from  them.  If  God  himself 
dictated  the  letter  of  the  sacred  oracles,  that  is  a  fact  ac- 
complished, and  none  of  the  copies  nor  translations  since 
made,  can  undo  the  fact  of  the  original  inspiration. 

A  fact  once  consummated,  nothing  that  follows  can 
erase  the  history  of  that  which  is  past.  There  are  then 
here  two  questions  to  be  carefully  distinguished.  First ; 
is  the  whole  Bible  divinely  inspired  ?  The  second  is  ; 
are  the  copies  made  by  monks  and  learned  men,  ages 
afterwards,  exact ;  or  are  they  not?  This  question  can 
in  no  degree  affect  the  other.  Beware  then  of  subordi- 
nating the  first  to  the  second  by  a  strange  confusion  ; 
they  are  independent  of  one  another.  A  book  is  from 
God,  or  it  is  not  from  God.  In  the  Litter  case,  I  should 
in  vain  transcribe  it  a  thousand  times  with  accuracy,  I 
could  not  make  it  divine.  And  in  the  first  case,  I  should 
in  vain  have  made  a  thousand  inaccurate  copies  ;  my 
ignorance  and  my  unfaithfulness  could  not  make  it  any 
less  the  work  of  God.  1' he. decalogue,  we  repeat  once 
more,  was  entirely  written  by  the  finger  of  Jehovah 
upon  two  tables  of  stono  ;  but  if  the  manuscripts  which 
now  give  it  to  me,  contained  some  variations,  this  second 
fact,  would  not  hinder  the'  first.  The  sentences,  the 
words  and  the  letters  of  the  Ten  Commandments  would 
have  been  none  the  less  written  by  God.  The  inspira- 
tion of  the  first  text — the  integrity  of  the  subsequent 
copies  ;  these  are  two  orders  of  facts  absolutely  differ- 
ent, and  separated  from  one  another  by  thousands  of 
miles  and  thousands  of  years.     Beware  then  of  con- 


VARIATIONS.  85 

founding  that  which  logic,  time  and  space  oblige  you  to 
distinguish. 

It  is  by  a  precisely  parallel  reasoning  that  we  reprove 
the  indiscreet  admirers  of  the  apocrypha.  The  ancient 
oracles  of  God,  we  say  to  them,  were  committed  to  the 
Jews,  as  the  later  oracles  were  afterwards  to  the  Chris- 
tians. If  then  the  book  of  Maccabees  was  merely  a 
human  book  in  the  days  of  Jesus  Christ ;  a  thousand 
decrees  of  the  Christian  Church  could  not  afterwards 
cause,  that  in  1560,  becoming  what  it  never  was  before, 
it  should  be  by  transubstantiation,  metamorphosed  into  a 
divine  book.  Did  the  prophets  write  the  Bible  with 
words  which  human  wisdom  dictated  to  them,  or  with 
words  given  by  God  ?  That  is  our  inquiry.  But  have 
they  been  faithfully  copied,  from  age  to  age,  from  manu- 
script to  manuscript  ?  That  is,  perhaps,  your  inquiry  ; 
it  is  very  important  undoubtedly ;  but  it  is  totally  different 
from  the  first.  Do  not  then  confound  what  God  has 
made  distinct. 

"  It  is  true,  without  doubt,"  some  one  will  say,  "  the  fidelity  of 
a  copy  does  not  render  the  original  divine,  when  it  is  not  so :  and 
the  inaccuracy  of  another  copy  will  not  render  it  human  if  it  is  not 
.so  already.  To  this,  therefore  we  have  made  no  pretension.  The 
fact  of  the  inspiration  of  the  sacred  text,  in  the  days  of  Moses  or 
in  those  of  St.  John,  cannot  depend  on  the  copies  of  them  which 
men  may  have  made  in  Europe  or  in  Africa,  two  or  three  thousand 
years  after  them  ;  but  if  the  second  of  these  facts  does  not  destroy 
the  first,  it  at  least  renders  it  illusory,  in  taking  away  its  import- 
ance.'' 

This  is  then  the  real  objection.  The  question  is  now 
changed  ;  we  are  no  longer  inquiring  after  the  inspira- 
tion of  the  original  text,  but  the  integrity  of  the  present 
text.  It  was  at  first  a  doctrinal  inquiry :  "  Is  it  declared 
in  the  Scriptures,  that  the  Scriptures  are  inspired,  even 
8 


86  OBJECTIONS. 

to  their  language  ?"  But  it  is  now  a  question  of  his- 
tory, or  rather  of  criticism :  "  Have  the  copyists  been 
accurate  ?  are  the  manuscripts  faithful  ?"  We  might 
then  be  silent  upon  a  thesis,  the  defence  of  which  is  not 
here  committed  to  us  ;  but  the  answer  is  so  easy  ;  nay 
more,  God  has  made  it  so  triumphant,  that  we  cannot 
withhold  it.  Besides,  the  faith  of  the  uninstructed  has 
been  so  often  disturbed  by  a  phantasmagoria  of  science, 
that  we  think  it  may  be  very  useful  to  state  the  case  as 
it  is.  And  although  the  objection  diverts  us  a  little  from 
the  direct  pursuit  of  our  subject,  yet  it  may  be  important 
to  follow  it. 

We  do  not  doubt  that  if  this  difficulty  had  been  pre- 
sented in  the  days  of  Anthony  Collins  and  the  Free 
Thinkers,  we  should  not  have  been  without  a  reply ; 
but  we  should  perhaps  have  felt  some  degree  of  embar- 
rassment ;  because  the  facts  were  not  yet  completely  de- 
veloped, and  the  field  of  conjecture  yet  unexplored,  re- 
mained perfectly  unbounded.  We  remember  the  per- 
plexities of  the  excellent  Bengel  on  this  subject ;  and 
we  know  that  from  them  proceeded,  at  first  his  laborious 
researches  upon  the  sacred  text,  and  then  his  admi ra- 
tion and  devout  gratitude  at  the  wonderful  preservation 
of  that  text. 

"  Of  what  advantage,"  would  the  objector  have  said  to  us,  "  can 
the  assurance  be,  that  eighteen  hundred  years  ago  the  primitive 
text  was  dictated  by  God,  if  I  have  no  more  the  certain  assurance 
that  the  manuscripts  of  our  Ubraries  present  it  to  me  now  in  its 
purity  1  and  if  it  be  true  (as  we  are  assured,)  that  the  variations 
of  these  manuscripts  are  at  least  thirty  thousand  1" 

Such  was  the  ancient  objection  ;  it  was  specious  ;  but 
in  our  day  it  is  recognised  by  all  who  have  investigated 
it,  to  be  but  a  vain  pretext.     The  rationalists  themselves 


VARIATIONS.  87 

have  avowed  that  it  can  no  longer  be  urged,  and  that  it 
must  be  renounced. 

The  Lord  has  miraculously  watched  over  his  word 
Facts  have  shown  it. 

In  constituting  for  its  depositories  first,  the  Jewish; 
chen  the  Christian  Church,  his  providence  must  have 
exercised  its  vigilance,  that  by  this  means  the  oracles  of 
God  should  be  faithfully  transmitted  to  us.  It  has  done 
so;  and  to  secure  this  result,  it  has  employed  divers 
causes,  of  which  we  shall  hereafter  have  occasion  to 
speak.  Recent  scientific  researches  have  placed  this 
fact  in  a  strong  light.  Herculean  labours  have  been 
pursued  during  the  last  century,  (especially  in  the  last 
half,  as  well  as  during  the  present  century,)  to  re-unite 
all  the  readings  or  variations^  which  could  be  furnished 
by  the  detailed  examination  of  the  manuscripts  of  the 
Holy  Scripture  preserved  in  the  several  libraries  of 
Europe ;  by  the  study  of  the  oldest  versions ;  by  a 
comparison  of  the  innumerable  quotations  of  the  sacred 
books  in  all  the  writings  of  the  Christian  Fathers ; — 
and  this  immense  labour  has  exhibited  a  result  admira- 
ble for  its  insignificance ;  imposing,  shall  I  say,  by  its 
diminutiveness. 

As  to  the  Old  Testament,  the  indefatigable  investiga- 
tions and  the  four  folios  of  Father  Houbigant,  the  thirty 
years'  labor  of  John  Henry  Michaelis  ;  above  all,  the 
great  critical  Bible,  and  the  ten  years'  study  of  the  famous 
Kennicott,  (upon  his  five  hundred  and  eighty-one  He- 
brew manuscripts,)  and,  finally,  the  collation  of  the  six 
hundred  and  eighty  manuscripts  of  Professor  Rossi : — 
as  to  the  New  Testament,  the  not  less  gigantic  investi- 
gations of  Mill,  Bengel,  Wetstein,  and  Griesbach,  (into 
the  three  hundred  and  thirty-five  manuscripts  of  the 


88  OBJECTIONS. 

Gospels  alone,)  the  later  researches  of  Nolan,  Matthei, 
Lawrence,  and  Hug  ;  above  all,  those  of  Scholz,  (with 
his  six  hundred  and  seventy-four  manuscripts  of  the 
Gospels,  his  two  hundred  of  the  Acts,  his  two  hundred 
and  fifty-six  of  Paul's  Epistles,  his  ninety-three,  of  the 
Apocalypse,  without  counting-  his  fifty-three  Leclinna- 
ria) ;  all  these  prodigious  labors  have  established,  in  a 
manner  so  convincing,  the  astonishing  preservation  of 
this  text,  although  copied  so  many  thousand  times,  (in 
Hebrew,  during  thirty-three  centuries,  and  in  Greek 
during  eighteen  centuries,)  that  the  hopes  of  the  enemies 
of  religion  from  this  quarter  have  been  overthrown  ;  and 
that,  as  Michaelis*  remarks,  "  they  have  thenceforward 
ceased  to  hope  anything  from  these  critical  researches, 
at  first  earnestly  recommended  by  them,  because  from 
them  they  expected  discoveries  which  no  one  has  made." 
The  learned  rationalist  Eichhorn  himself  also  acknoAV- 
ledges,  that  the  different  readings  of  the  Hebrew  manu- 
scripts collated  by  Kennicott,  offer  scarcely  sufficient 
compensation  for  the  labor  they  have  cost.f  But  these 
very  failures,  and  this  absence  of  discoveries,  have  been, 
for  the  Church  of  God,  a  precious  discovery.  She 
looked  for  it ;  but  she  rejoices  to  owe  it  to  the  very 
labors  of  her  enemies,  and  to  the  labors  which  they  de- 
signed for  the  overthrow  of  her  faith.  ''  In  truth,"  says 
a  learned  man  of  our  day,  "  if  we  except  these  brilliant 
negative  conclusions  to  which  they  have  come,  the  di- 
rect result  obtained  by  so  many  lives  of  men  consumed 
in  these  immense  researches,  appears  to  be  a  nullity ; 
and  we  might  say,  that  lime,  talent,  and  science  have 
been  foolishly  spent  in  arriving  there." ;}.     But,  we  re- 

•  Tome  ii.  p.  266.  t  Einleitung,  2  Th.  s.  700. 

X  Wiseman,  Discourse  on  the  Relations,  &c.  vol  ii.  disc.  a. 


VARIATIONS.  89 

peat,  this  result  is  immense  by  its  nothingness,  and 
almighty  in  its  impotence.  When  we  reflect  that  the 
Bible  has  been  copied  during  three  thousand  years,  as 
no  book  of  human  of  composition  has  ever  been,  nor  ever 
will  be;  that  it  has  undergone  all  the  catastrophes  and 
all  the  captivities  of  Israel  ;  that  it  has  been  transported 
for  seventy  years  into  Babylon  ;  that  it  has  seen  itself 
so  often  persecuted,  or  forgottt  n.  oi  interdicted,  or  burned, 
from  the  days  of  the  Philistines  to  those  of  the  Seleuci- 
dae  ;  when  we  recollect,  that  since  the  days  of  our  Sa- 
vior, it  has  had  to  traverse  the  first  three  centuries  of 
imperial  persecutions,  when  they  threw  to  the  wild 
beasts  the  men  that  were  convicted  of  possessing  the 
sacred  books  ;  then  the  seventh,  eighth,  and  ninth  cen- 
turies, when  false  books,  fals"  leo-pnds,  and  false  decre- 
tals were  everywhere  multipli(  d  ,  the  tenth  century, 
when  so  few  men  could  read,  even  among  the  princes  ; 
the  twelfth,  thirteenth,  and  fourteenth  centuries,  when 
the  use  of  the  Scriptures  in  the  language  of  the  people 
was  punished  with  death ;  when  they  mutilated  the 
books  of  the  old  Fathers;  wh<n  they  retrenched  and 
falsified  so  many  ancient  traditions,  raid  the  very  acts  of 
emperors  and  those  of  councils; — then  we  understand 
how  necessary  it  has  been  that  the  providence  of  God 
should  always  have  h^ld  its  powerful  hand  outstretched 
for  the  preservation  of  all  the  writings  in  their  puiity. 
A  constant  and  almost  miraculous  guardianship  was 
needed  to  hinder,  on  the  one  side,  the  Jewish  Church 
from  impairing  the  integritv  of  that  word  which  recounts 
their  revolts,  which  predicts  their  ruin,  which  describes 
Jesus  Christ ;  and  on  the  other,  to  secure  the  transmis- 
sion to  us,  in  all  their  puiity.  by  the  Christian  churches, 
(the  most  powerful  sects  of  which,  and  especially  the 
8* 


90  OBJECTIONS. 

Roman,  have  prohibited  to  the  people  the  reading  of 
the  Scriptures,  and  have  in  so  many  ways  substituted 
the  traditions  of  the  middle  ages  for  the  word  of  God,) 
of  those  Scriptures  which  condemn  all  their  traditions, 
their  images,  their  dead  languages,  their  absolutions, 
their  celibacy ;  which  say  of  Rome,  that  she  shall  be 
the  seat  of  a  frightful  apostacy,  where  shall  be  seen  "  the 
man  of  sin  sitting  as  God  in  the  temple  of  God,  making 
war  on  the  saints,  forbidding  to  marry,  and  commanding 
to  abstain  from  meats  which  God  has  made;"  which 
say  of  images,  "  thou  shalt  not  worship  them  ;"  of  un- 
known tongues,  "  thou  shalt  not  use  them ;"  of  the  cup, 
"drink  ye  all  of  it  ;"  of  the  Virgin,  "woman,  what 
have  I  to  do  with  thee  ?"  and  of  marriage,  "  it  is  hon- 
orable  in  all." 

Now,  although  all  the  libraries  containing  ancient 
copies  of  the  sacred  books  have  been  called  to  testify ; 
although  the  elucidations  given  by  the  Fathers  of  all 
ages  have  been  studied ;  although  the  Arabic,  Syriac, 
Latin,  Armenian  and  Ethiopic  versions  have  been  col- 
lated ;  although  all  the  manuscripts  of  all  countries  and 
ages,  from  the  third  to  the  sixteenth  century  have  been 
collected  and  examined  a  thousand  times,  by  innumer- 
able critics,  who  sought  with  ardor,  and  as  the  recom- 
pense and  glory  of  their  fatiguing  vigils,  some  new  text ; 
although  the  learned  men,  not  satisfied  with  the  libraries 
of  the  West,  have  visited  those  of  Russia,  and  carried 
their  researches  even  to  the  convents  of  Mount  Athos,  of 
Asiatic  Turkey  and  of  Egypt,  to  search  there  for  new- 
copies  of  the  sacred  text ; — "  they  have  discovered  noth- 
ing," says  a  learned  writer  already  quoted,  "  not  even  a 
solitary  reading  which  could  cast  doubt  upon  any  pas- 
sage before  considered  certain.      All  the  variations, 


VARIATIONS.  91 

almost  without  exception,  leave  untouched  the  essential 
thoughts  of  each  phrase,  and  affect  only  points  of  se- 
condary importance,"  such  as  the  insertion  or  omission 
of  an  article  or  a  conjunction,  the  position  of  an  adjec- 
tive before  or  after  a  substantive,  the  greater  or  less  ex- 
actness of  a  grammatical  construction. 

Do  we  ask  for  a  standard  for  the  Old  Testament? 
The  famous  Indian  manuscript,  recently  deposited  in  the 
library  of  Cambridge,  may  furnish  an  example.  It  is 
now  about  thirty-three  years  since  the  pious  and  learned 
Claudius  Buchanan,  in  visiting  the  western  peninsula 
of  India,  saw  in  the  hands  of  the  black  Jews  of  Malabar, 
(believed  to  be  the  remnants  of  the  tribes  scattered  at 
Nebuchadnezzar's  first  invasion,)  an  immense  scroll, 
composed  of  thirty-seven  skins  died  red  ;  forty-eight 
feet  long,  twenty-two  inches  wide,  and  which,  in  its  per- 
fect condition,  must  have  been  ninety  English  feet  long. 
The  Holy  Scriptures  had  been  copied  on  it  by  different 
hands.  There  were  left  a  hundred  and  seventeen  col- 
umns of  beautiful  writing  ;  and  nothing  was  wanting 
but  Leviticus  and  a  part  of  Deuteronomy.  Buchanan 
procured  this  ancient  and  precious  monument,  which 
had  been  used  in  the  worship  of  the  synagogue,  and  he 
has  recently  deposited  it  in  the  Cambridge  library. 
There  are  features  which  gives  satisfactory  evidence 
that  it  was  not  a  copy  of  a  copy  brought  there  by  Eu- 
ropean Jews.  Now  Mr.  Yeates  has  recently  examined 
it  with  great  attention,  and  has  taken  the  pains  to  com- 
pare it,  word  for  word,  letter  for  letter,  with  our  He- 
brew edition  of  Van  der  Hooght.  He  has  published 
the  result  of  these  researches.  And  what  has  he  found? 
Even  this  ;  that  there  do  not  exist  between  the  text  of 
India  and  that  of  the  West,  more  than  forty  petty  differ- 


92  OBJECTIONS. 

ences,  of  which  not  one  is  sufficiently  serious  to  make 
the  slightest  change  in  the  meaning  and  in  the  interpre- 
tation  of  our  ancient  text ;  and  that  these  forty  differences 
consist  in  the  addition  or  retrenchment  of  an  (^)  r,  or  a 
(1)  V,  letters,  whose  presence  or  absence  in  Hebrew 
cannot  change  the  power  of  a  word.*  We  know  that 
the  Masorites,  or  teachers  of  tradition  among  the  Jews 
were  men  whose  whole  profession  consisted  in  copying 
the  Scriptures  ;  we  know  how  far  these  men,  learned  in 
minutias,  carried  their  respect  for  the  letter  ;  and  when 
we  read  the  rules  of  their  profession,  we  understand  the 
use  which  the  providence  of  God,  who  had  confided  his 
oracles  to  the  Jewish  people,  made  of  their  reverence, 
of  their  rigor,  and  even  of  their  superstition.  They 
counted,  in  each  book,  the  number  of  the  verses,  that  of 
the  words,  that  of  the  letters ;  they  would  have  said  to 
you,  for  example,  that  the  letter  A  recurs  forty-two 
thousand  three  hundred  and  seventy-seven  times  in  the 
Bible  ;  the  letter  B  thirty-eight  thousand  two  hundred 
and  eighteen  times,  and  so  of  the  rest ;  they  would  have 
scrupled  to  change  the  situation  of  a  letter  evidently 
misplaced,  they  would  merely  have  advised  you  of  it  in 
the  margin,  and  have  supposed  that  some  mystery  was 
connected  with  it ;  they  could  have  told  you  the  middle 
letter  of  the  Pentateuch,  a.nd  the  middle  letter  of  each 
of  the  books  that  compose  it;  they  would  never  suffer 
an  erasure  to  be  made  in  their  manuscripts  ;  and  if  any 
mistake  was  made  in  copying,  they  would  reject  the 
papyrus  or  the  skin  which  was  thus  stained,  to  renew 
their  work  upon  another  scroll  ;  for  they  were  equally 
forbidden  to  correct  a  fault,  and  to  preserve  for  their  sa- 

•  See  Chris.  Obs.  xii.  p.  170.— Examin.  of  jti  Indian  copy  of  the  Pentat 
p.  8.— Home's  Introd.  and  Append,  p.  95.     Edit.  1S18. 


VARIATIONS.  93 

cred  scroll,  a  parchment  or  a  skin  that  had  undergone 
any  erasure. 

This  intervention  of  the  providence  of  God  in  the  pre- 
servation of  the  Old  Testament  will  become  still  more 
remarkable  in  our  view,  if  we  compare  the  astonishing 
integrity  of  the  original  Hebrew  (after  so  many  centu- 
ries,) with  the  immense  alteration  which  had  taken 
place  in  the  Septuagint,  even  in  the  days  of  Jesus  Christ, 
{a  space  of  about  two  hundred  years,)  although  this 
version  had  acquired,  after  the  almost  universal  adop- 
tion of  the  Greek  language,  an  authority,  at  least  semi- 
canonical,  first  with  the  Jews,  and  then  with  the  Chris- 
tians ;  although  it  was  at  a  later  period,  the  only  text 
used  by  the  fathers,  (if  we  except  Origen  and  Jerome,) 
the  only  one  on  which  Chrysostom  and  Theodoret  wrote 
their  commentaries,  the  only  one  from  which  Athanasius, 
Basil  and  Gregory  Nazienzen  drew  their  arguments ; 
akhough  the  western  world,  like  the  eastern,  had,  for  so 
many  ages,  enjoyed  no  other  than  this  borrowed  light, 
(since  the  ancient  Italian  Vulgate — universally  em- 
ployed, was  a  translation  of  the  Greek  Septuagint  and 
not  of  the  Hebrew  text:)  hear  what  the  learned  tell  us 
of  the  alterations  in  this  important  monument  of  the  ad- 
ditions, changes,  interpolations  it  had  received,  first  from 
the  Jews  who  lived  before  Christ,  then  by  the  unbe- 
aeving  Jews,  and  afterwards,  through  the  negligence  of 
Christian  copyists.  "  The  evil  was  such  {mirum  in 
modurrC^)  says  Dr.  Lee,  '-that,  in  some  books,  the  an- 
-ient  version  could  scarcely  be  recognized;"*  and  when 
Origen  (A  D.  231.)  had  consecrated  twenty-eight  years 
-)f  his  noble  life  to  the  exanunation  of  the  various  manu- 
scripts, to  accomplish  for  this  text  (in  his  Tetrapla  and 

•  Proleg.  in  Bib.  Polyg.  Bagsteriana.    (iv.  §  11.) 


94  OBJECTIONS. 

Hexapla)  that  which  modern  critics  have  done  for  thai 
of  the  Old  and  New  Testaments,  not  only  could  he  not 
find  a  copy  that  was  correct,  but  he  even  increased  the 
evil.  By  the  unskilfulness  of  his  copyists,  (who  neg- 
lected his  asterisks  and  obelisks.)  the  greater  part  of  his 
marginal  corrections  slipped  into  the  text,  so  that  new 
errors  were  accumulated  to  such  an  extent  that  in 
Jerome's  day  his  annotations  could  not  be  distinguished 
from  the  primitive  text.*  We  repeat  it ;  these  facts, 
viewed  in  connexion  with  the  astonishing  preservation 
of  the  Hebrew  text  (twelve  hundred  years  older  than 
the  Septuagint,)  illustrates  most  impressively  the  inter- 
vention of  a  particular  providence  to  preseve  the  purity 
of  the  sacred  text. 

Thus  much  for  the  Old  Testament.  But  let  it  not 
be  supposed  that  the  Providence  which  watched  over 
the  holy  book,  and  which  had  intrusted  it  to  the  Jews 
(Rom.  iii.  1,  2,)  has  any  less  protected  the  oracles  of 
the  New  Testament,  committed  by  it  to  the  new  people 
of  God.  He  has  not  left  to  them  any  feebler  incentives 
to  gratitude  and  confidence. 

We  would  first  cite  here  the  recent  experience  of  the 
authors  of  a  version  of  the  New  Testament  just  published 
in  Switzerland,  and  in  the  protracted  labor  of  vv-hich  Ave 
participated.  One  single  faotwill  exhibit  to  every  class 
of  readers  how  completely  insignificant  are  the  difii-rent 
readings  of  the  different  manuscripts.  The  translators 
just  referred  to,  followed  without  exception,  the  received 
edition^  that  is  the  Greek  text  of  Elzevir  1624,  so  long 
adopted  by  all  the  French  churches.     But,  as  the  origi- 

*  Grahe,  Epit.  an  doct.  Mill  Oxford,  1705  ;  et  Dissertat.  de  variis  vitiig 
Ikx.  Interpretum,  p.  50,  oxon.  1710. — Samuel  Lee  :  Projeg.  in  Polyg, 
Bagster  (Prol.  iv.  §  11.)    Fisher,  Prolusiones  in  Vers,  grascis  V.  T.  &c. 


VARIATIONS.  95 

nal  plan  of  their  work  required  them  to  introduce  into 
the  original  text  the  variations  most  approved  by  the 
critics  of  the  last  century,  they  were  often  embarrassed  by 
finding  the  impossibility  of  expressing  even  in  the  most 
literal  French,  the  new  shade  introduced  into  the  Greek 
by  this  correction.  The  French  language,  in  the  most 
scrupulous  version,  is  not  sufficiently  flexible  to  express 
these  differences  ;  as  the  moulds  made  on  the  face  of  a 
king,  reproduce  his  noble  features  in  the  brass,  yet  with- 
out shewing  all  the  wrinkles  and  veins. 

At  the  same  time  we  are  desirious  of  giving  to  those 
of  our  readers  who  are  strangers  to  sacred  criticism, 
two  or  three  other  more  im.pressive  proofs  of  his  provi- 
dence, which,  for  thirty  centuries,  has  watched  over  our 
sacred  text. 

First ;  let  us  compare  the  two  Protestant  translations 
of  Osterwald  and  Martin.  There  are  few  modern  ver- 
sions more  like  each  other.  Both  being  made  from  the 
ancient  version  of  the  Geneva  pastors,  written  nearl)"  at 
the  same  time  and  in  the  same  spirit,  differ  so  little  from 
each  other,  especially  in  the  New  Testament,  that  our 
Bible  societies  distribute  them  indiscriminately,  and  that 
it  is  embarrassing  to  state  which  we  prefer.  Yet,  if  you 
will  take  the  trouble  to  notice  their  differences  in  every 
particular,  as  we  have  done  in  comparing  together  our 
four  hundred  manuscripts  of  the  New  Testament,  we 
affirm  in  advance  (and  then  we  think,  below  the  truth,) 
that  these  two  French  texts  are  three  times,  and  in  many 
chapters,  ten  times  more  distant  from  each  other,  than 
the  Greek  text  of  our  printed  editions  is,  we  do  not  say, 
from  only  the  least  esteemed  Greek  manuscripts  of  our 
libraries,  but  from  all  their  manuscripts  taken  to- 
gether.— We  mean  to  say  that  if  some  skilful  and  ma- 


96  OBJECTIONS. 

licious  man  (as  the  unhappy  Voltaire  or  the  too  cele- 
brated Anthony  Collins,)  had  made  his  selection  from 
all  the  Oriental  and  occidental  manuscripts,  of  the  worst 
readings  and  the  most  discordant  variations  of  our  re- 
ceived text,  with  the  perfidious  intention  of  composing  a 
text  the  most  false  ;  such  a  man,  we  say  (even  in  em- 
ploying these  variations  justified  by  one  alone  of  the 
four  or  five  hundred  manuscripts  of  our  libraries,) 
would  not  be  able,  with  all  his  bad  intention,  to  pro- 
duce from  his  labor  a  Testament  less  like  ours,  than 
that  of  Martin  is  like  that  of  Osterwald.  You  might 
distribute  it  in  place  of  the  true  text,  with  as  little  in- 
convenience as  you  would  find  in  giving  to  the  French 
Protestants,  that  of  Martin  rather  than  Osterwald's,  or 
Osterwald's  rather  than  Martin's ;  and  with  much  less 
scruple  than  you  feel  in  spreading  among  the  members 
of  the  Romish  Church,  the  version  of  Le  Maitre  De 
Sacy. 

It  is  true  these  latter  books  are  only  translations, 
whilst  all  the  Greek  manuscripts  present  themselves  as 
original ;  and  it  must  be  agreed  that  our  comparison,  in 
this  respect,  is  very  imperfect.  But  it  is  not  the  less 
adapted  to  establish  the  friends  of  the  word  of  God,  in 
making  them  comprehend  how  utterly  insignificant  the 
variations  are. 

But  we  advance  to  something  more  direct  and  more 
precise. 

In  order  to  give  all  our  readers  some  estimate,  at  once 
of  the  number  and  the  innocence  of  the  received  read- 
ings in  the  manuscripts  of  our  libraries,  we  will  pre- 
sent two  specimens.     The  first  table  contains  all  the 

VARIATIONS  IN  ALL  THE  EASTERN  AND  WESTERN  MANU- 
SCRIPTS, in  the  first  eight  chapters  of  the  epistle  to  the 


VARIATIONS.  y/ 

Romans.  The  second  contains  the  entire  epistle  with 
ALL  THR  CORRECTIONS  which  the  Celebrated  Griesbachy 
the  oracle  of  modern  criticism,  thinks  ought  to  be  in- 
troduced. 

These  passages  have  been  selected  promiscuously ; 
and  we  declare  that  no  reason,  relative  to  our  argument,  1 
has  made  us  prefer  them  to  others. 

We  delight  in  presenting  here  these  short  documents 
to  those  persons,  whose  position  does  not  call  them  to 
pursue  the  investigations  of  sacred  criticism,  and  yet 
who  may  have  been  somewhat  perplexed  by  the  at  once 
mysterious  and  imposing  language  so  often  employed 
on  this  subject,  by  the  rationah"sts  of  the  last  century. 
To  hear  them,  would  you  not  have  believed  that  mo- 
dern science  was  about  to  give  us  a  new  Bible,  to  tear 
Jesus  Christ  from  the  throne  of  God,  to  restore  to  man 
calumniated  by  our  theology,  all  his  titles  of  innocence, 
and  to  reform  all  the  doctrines  of  our;  antiquated  or- 
thodoxy? 

As  the  first  term  of  comparison,  our  columns  pre- 
sent, upon  the  first  eight  verses  of  the  Epistle  to  the 
Romans,  merely  the  differences  of  the  text  of  Martin 
from  that  of  Osterwald  ;  whilst  the  following  columns, 
instead  of  comparing  only  one  manuscript  with  any 
other  one,  will  show  the  differences  of  our  text  from  all 
the  manuscripts,  which  every  critic  down  to  Griesbach 
has  been  able  to  collect.  This  indefatigable  scholar 
searched  for  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans,  first,  seven  manu- 
scripts in  Uncial  Letters^  or  Greek  capitals,  believed 
to  be  from  thirteen  to  fourteen  hundred  years  old,  (the 
Alexandrian  in  the  British  Museum  ;  that  of  the  Vati- 
can, and  that  of  Cardinal  Passionei,  at  Rome  ;  that  of 
Ephremi  at  Paris  ;  that  of  Saint-Germain^  that  of 
9 


98 


OBJECTIONS. 


Dresden^  and  that  of  Cardinal  Coislin ;  and  finally  a 
hundred  and  ten  manuscripts  in  cursive  (small  letters,) 
and  thirty  others,  mostly  brought  from  Mount  Athos, 
and  examined  by  the  learned  Matthei.  who  traveled 
much  in  Russia  and  the  East  for  this  purpose. 

For  the  four  Evangelists,  the  same  Griesbach  has 
been  able  to  consult  three  hundred  and  thirty-five. 

FIRST    TABLE. 


EPISTLE   TO   THE   ROMANS. 


Text  of  OsterwaM. 
verse. 

1.  to  be. 

2.  which  .  .  promised  before. 

3.  of  the  race. 

4.  and  who,  according  to 
the  Spirit,  .  .  was. 
was  declared. 

with  power. 

the  Spirit  of  hoUness. 

to  wit. 

J.  C.  our  Lord. 

5.  In  order  to  lead  the 
Gentiles  to  the  obedience 
of  the  faith. 

6.  of  the  number  of  whom 
you  also  are,  you  who 
have  been  called. 

7.  called  and  saints, 
grace  and  peace  be 
given  to  you  from 
God  our  father. 

8.  Before  all  things. 
in  regard  to  you  aH. 
is  celebrated. 


Text  of  Martin. 

to  be. 

the  which  .  .  before  promised. 

of  the  family. 

and  who  was  according  to 

the  Spirit. 

was  fully  declared. 

by  power. 

the  Spirit  of  sanctiiication. 

that  is  to  say. 

our  Lord  J.  C. 

in  order  to  lead  the 

Gentiles  to  believe. 

Among  whom 

you  also  are,  you  who 

are  called. 

called  to  be  Saints. 

may  grace  and  peace  be 

given  to  you  by 

God  our  father. 

Firstly. 

concerning  you  all. 

is  renowned. 


These  differences  of  the  two  French  texts  are  suffi- 


VARIATIONS,  99 

ciently  insignificant ;  and  if  any  one  should  tell  us  that 
in  all  the  verses,  one  or  other  of  the  two  is  inspired  of 
God,  our  faith  would  receive  from  it  a  great  aid.  Now 
you  will  see  that  the  variations  of  the  Greek  manu- 
scripts are  still  more  insignificant. 

Let  us  now  observe  on  the  same  verses,  the  table  of  ^^ 
the  received  text,  compared  with  all  the  differences^  that 
the  hundred  and  fifty  Greek  manuscripts  collected  and 
examined  for  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans,  can  present. 

We  shall  not  notice  here  the  differences  presented  by 
the  ancient  translations,  nor  those  which  pertain  to  punc- 
tuation, (this  element  being  nearly  nothing  in  the  most 
ancient  manuscripts.) 

We  shall  translate  the  first  column  (that  of  the  re- 
ceived text)  according  to  Martin,  who  is  considered 
more  literal  than  Osterwald ;  and  we  shall  endeavour 
to  translate  as  exactly  as  possible  the  Greek  readings 
of  the  second  column. 

SECOND    TABLE. 

The  received  text,  (that  of  El-    Variations    collected    from    all 
zevir,  1624.)  the  Greek  manuscripts  to- 

gether. 

1.  (No  difference.) 

2.  By  liis  prophets,  By  the  prophets. 

[In  only  one  manuscript  in  Paris.] 

3.  Who  was  born.  Who  was  begotten, 

[lu  only  one  manuscript  of  Upsal,  and 
merely  by  the  cliange  of  two  letters.  J 

4.  Who  was  declared.  Who  was  before  declared. 

[In  only  one  of  22  manuscripts  of  the 
Barberini  library.] 
of  J.  C,  our  Lord.  of  J.  C.  our  Gotl. 

[In  only  one  manuscript  of  Vienna.] 
5  &  6.  (No  difference.) 


100  OBJECTIONS. 

7.  Who  are  at  Rome,  and  dear-    Who   are  in   the    love  of  God, 
ly  beloved  of  God,  called.        called. 

[One  only  MS.  the  uncial  of  Dresden.] 
Who  are  at  Rome  called, 
Two  MSS.  only,  that  of  St.    Ger- 
main,   Uncial,    and    one    of    Rome, 
small  letters.] 
of  God  our  fathelr.  of  God  the  father. 

[Only  one  MS.  of  Upsal.] 

8.  First.  First. 

[The  difference  cannot  be  expressed. 
It  is  only  in  one  MS.] 
concerning  you  all.  in  regard  to  you  all. 

[Twelve  MSS.] 

We  see  it ;  these  nine  or  ten  different  readings  are  un- 
important in  themselves,  and  moreover  they  have  in 
their  favour,  only  one  or  two  out  of  the  hundred  and 
fifty  manuscripts,  which  have  been  consulted  upon  these 
eight  verses,  if  you  except  the  last  ("  in  regard  to  you 
all,"  instead  of  "concerning  you  all,")  which  counts  for 
it  twelve  manuscripts,  of  which  four  are  Uncial  or 
capital  letters. 

The  differences  between  Osterwald  and  Martin  are 
three  times  as  numerous  ;  and  ordinarily  they  have  a 
much  more  important  effect  upon  the  meaning.  This 
comparison,  if  you  extend  it  to  all  the  New-Testament, 
would  possess  the  same  character,  and  become  even 
more  convincing. 

Yet  we  presume  it  would  be  agreeable  to  those  of 
our  readers  who  are  strangers  to  such  researches,  to 
offer  them  in  a  third  table,  still  a  new  test  of  the  in- 
nocence of  the  variations,  and  of  the  nullity  of  the  ob- 
jection drawn  from  them. 

This  table  will  contain  the  entire  collection  of  correc- 
tions, which  the  learned  Griesbach,  the  father  of  sacred 
criticism,  has  thought  proper  to  introduce  into  the  text 


VARIATIONS.  1 0 1 

of  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans,  after  the  long  researches 
which  he  and  his  predecessors  have  made  upon  the 
manuscripts. 

To  appreciate  fully  the  immensity  of  such  labors,  we 
should  have  gone  personally  into  this  study. 

At  the  same  time  we  would  remark  to  the  readers  of 
this  third  table : 

First,  that  Griesbach  is.  in  general,  accused  by  the 
learned  (such  as  Matthei,  Nolan,  Lawrence,  Scholz 
and  others.)  of  being  too  eager  to  admit  new  readings 
into  the  ancient  text.  The  temptation  is  explained  by 
the  habits  of  the  human  heart.  The  learned  Whitby 
had  already,  and  not  without  reason,  reproached  Dr. 
Mill  for  this  ;  who,  however,  had  not  admitted  so  many 
corrections  as  Griesbach. 

Secondly  : — observe  again,  that  we  show  in  this  ta- 
ble, not  only  the  corrections  which  the  learned  critic 
has  persuaded  himself  to  adopt^  but  those  also  which 
he  himself  considers  as  only  doubtful^  and  to  be  pre- 
ferred to  the  sacred  text  with  some  remaining  distrust. 

THIRD    TABLE. 

CORRECTIONS    OF    GRIESBACH    IN    THE    ENTIRE    EPISTLE   TO 
THE    ROMANS. 

ANCIENT   TEXT.  NEW  TEXT. 

(Martin's  translation.)  Corrected  by  Griesbach, 

(and  translated  by  us  with  the  utmost 
possible  exactness.) 

CHAPTER   I. 
verse. 
13.  to  gather  some  fruit.  To  gather  some  fruit. 

(There  is  here  only  an  inversion  of 
the  words.) 

9* 


102 


OBJECTIONS. 


I  am  not  ashamed. 


17.  of  the  Gospel  of  Christ. 

19. 

21. 

24.  Wherefore  also. 

27. 

29.  Of  injustice,  of  impurity, 
of  wickedness. 

31.  Without  natural  affection, 
persons  who  are  never 
pacified,  without  mercy. 


I  am  not  ashamed. 

(the  difference  cannot  be  expressed 

by  a  translation.) 
of  the  Gospel, 
(difference  inexpressible.) 
(difference  of  spelling.) 
Wherefore. 

(difference  inexpressible.) 
of  injustice,  of  wickedness. 

without  natural  affection,  with- 
out mercy. 


CHAPTER    II. 


9.  indignation  and  wrath. 
13. 


wrath  and  indignation, 
(the  article  the  omitted.) 


CHAPTER   III. 

22.  to  all  and  upon  all  them    to  all  them  that  believe, 
that  believe. 

(article  the  omitted  twice.) 
we  conclude  in  fact, 
(difference  inexpressible.) 


25. 

28.  We  then  conclude. 


CHAPTER   rv. 


1. 


(order  of  words  changed.) 
Abraham  our  ancestor, 
(indefinite  article  omitted.) 
(article  omitted.) 
(difference  inexpressible.) 
19.  and  not  being  weak  in  faith,  he  looked   not,   feeble  in   faith, 
he  looked  not  at  &c.  to. 


Abraham  our  father. 
4. 
12. 
13. 


14. 


1. 
11. 
12. 
14. 


CHAPTER    V. 

(difference  of  spelling.) 

CHAPTER   VI. 

(pronoun  omitted.) 
(are  omitted.) 
(it  omitted.) 
(to  death  omitted.) 


VARIATIONS. 


1G3 


CHAPTER   VII. 


6.  that  in  which,  being  dead. 
10. 
14. 

18.  ' 

20. 
26. 1  render  thanks  to  God. 


being  dead  to  that  in  which, 
(difference  of  an  accent.) 
(difference  of  a  letter.) 
(difference  of  spelling.) 
(/repeated  for  emphasis.) 
thanks  be  to  God. 


CHAPTER   Vin. 
1.  (words  omitted  here,  which  are  trans, 

posed  to  the  fourth  verse. 
11.  by  his  spirit  (Martin  says  :     on  account  of  his  spirit. 

on  account  of  his  spirit.) 
26.  to  our  infirmities.  to  our  infirmity. 

(another  difference  inexpressible.) 
prays  for  us  with  groanings.    prays  with  groanings. 

35.  (difference  cannot  be  expressed.) 

36,  (order  of  the  phrase  changed.) 

CHAPTER    IX. 

(a  difference  in  the  order.) 

(a  difference  in  the  spelling.) 

works. 

they. 

who. 

CHAPTER    X. 

for  them. 

(difference  cannot  be  expressed.) 

(difference  of  spelling.) 

(difference  inexpressible.) 

(change  of  the  order  and  the  spelling.) 


11. 

15. 

31.  works  of  the  law. 

32.  for  they. 

33.  whosoever. 


1.  for  Israel. 


5. 
15. 
19. 


2.  against      Israel 
Lord. 

3. 

6.  If  it  is  by  grace,  then  it  is 
710  more  of  works;  other- 
wise grace  is  no  more 
grace;  but  if  it  be  of 
works,  then  it  is  no 
more  grace,  otherwise 
work  is  no  more  work. 


CHAPTER    Xr. 
saying :     against  Israel 


Lord. 


(«7Ki  omitted.) 

If  it  is  by  grace,  it  is  no  more  by 

works;  otherwise  grace  is 

no  more  crrace. 


104 


OBJECTIONS. 


7. 
19. 
21. 
23. 

30.  you  yourselves  were. 


11.  serving  the  Lord. 


20.  If  then  thine  enemy. 


(difference  inexpressiblft.) 
(article  omitted.) 
(difference  inexpressible.) 
(difference  of  onliography.) 
you  were. 


CHAPTER    Xn. 


9.  Thou  shait  not  steal,  thou 
shalt  not  bear  false  wit- 
ness, thou  shalt  not  covet. 


(a  pronoun  repeated.) 

(a  pronoun  omitted.) 

serving  the  opportunity. 

(this  difference  is  caused  by  the 
change  of  one  letter,  and  the  trans- 
position of  another.) 

If  thine  enemy. 

CHAPTER   Xni. 

(difference  inexpressible.) 
(transposition  of  words.) 
Thou  shalt  not  steal,  thou  shalt 
not  covet. 


CHAPTER   XIV. 


9. 
14. 


(a  difference  made  by  the  addition  of 

two  letters.) 
(difference  inexpressible.) 


CHAPTER   XV. 


3. 

7.  as  Christ  hath  also  receiv- 

ed you, 

8.  now  I  say. 

19.  by  the  power  of  the  spirit 
of  God. 

24. 1  will  go  towards  you, 
when  I  shall  depart  to 
go  into  Spain  ;  and  I 
hope  to  see  you. 

29.  with  abundance  of  bless- 
ing from  the  Gospel  of 
Christ. 


(a  transposition.) 

(the  difference  cannot  be  shown  in 

English.) 
(difference  inexpressible.) 
as  Christ  hath  also  received  us. 

for  I  say. 

by  the  power  of  the  spirit. 

when  I  shall  depart  to  go 
into  Spain,  1  hope  to  see 
you. 

with  abundance  of  Christ's  bene- 
diction. 


VARIATIONS,  105 


CHAPTER  XVI. 


2,  (difference  inexpressible.) 

3.  Priscilla.  Prisca. 

5.  who  is  the  first  fruits   of    who  is  first  fruits  of  Asia. 

Achaia. 

6.  who  has    labored    greatly     who    has    labored     greatly     for 

for  us.  you. 

18,  Our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  Our  Lord  Christ. 

20.  (amen  omitted) 

25.  (GrJesbach  thinks  this  verse  ought 

to  be  at  the  beginning  of  the  xvth 

Chapter.) 

We  then  see  clearly  how  insignificant  those  varia- 
tions are,  of  which  so  much  was  said  at  first 

Such  has  been  the  astonishing  preservation  of  the 
Greek  manuscripts  which  have  transmitted  to  us  the 
New-Testament.  After  having  been  copied  and  re- 
copied  so  many  times  in  Asia,  Europe  and  Africa  ;  in 
convents,  in  colleges,  in  palaces,  or  in  parsonages  ;  and 
that,  almost  without  interruption,  for  fifteen  hundred 
years;  after  that,  during  the  last  three  centuries,  and 
especially  the  last  hundred  and  thirty  years,  so  many 
noble  characters,  so  many  ingenious  minds,  so  many 
learned  lives  have  been  consumed  in  labours  till  then 
unrivalled  in  their  extent,  admirable  in  their  sagacity, 
and  scrupulous  as  those  of  the  Masorites  ;  after  that,  all 
the  Greek  manuscripts  of  the  New-Testament,  buried 
in  private  or  monastic  or  national  libraries  both  eastern 
and  western,  have  been  searched ;  after  that  they  have 
compared  with  them,  not  only  all  the  ancient  versions 
of  the  Scriptures,  Latin.  Salidic,  Ethiopic,  Arabic,  Scla- 
vonic, Persian,  Coptic,  Syriac  and  Gothic  ;  but  also  all 
the  ancient  fathers  of  the  Church  who  have  cited  them 
in  their  innumerable  writings,  both  in   Latin  and  in 


106  OBJECTIONS. 

Greek ;  after  so  many  researches ;  see,  by  our  speci- 
men, what  they  have  been  able  to  find. 

Judge  them  all  from  this  one  Epistle  thus  put  fully 
under  your  eye.  It  is  the  longest  and  the  most  important 
pf  the  Epistles  of  the  New-Testament,  "  the  golden  key 
i>f  the  Scriptures,"  "  the  ocean  of  Christian  doctrine." 
It  has  four  hundred  and  thirty-three  verses  ;  and  among 
its  four  hundred  and  thirty-three  verses,  ninety-six 
Greek  words  not  found  elsewhere  in  the  New-Testa- 
ment. And  (admitting  even  all  the  corrections  adopted, 
or  only  preferred  by  Griesbach,)  how  many  readings 
have  you  found  in  it,  which  change  even  slightly  the 
sense  of  any  phrase  ?  You  have  found  five  !  And 
what  are  they  ?     We  will  repeat  them  ; 

1.  (Chap.  vii.  6.)  In  place  of:  that  in  ichich  .... 
being  dead,  Griesbach  reads :  "  being  dead  to  that  in 
which.^^  And  remark  that  here,  the  difference  in  the 
Greek  is  in  only  one  letter  (an  o  in  place  of  an  e;)  and 
that  on  the  other  hand,  the  greatest  number  of  the  manu- 
scripts were  so  much  in  favor  of  the  old  text,  that  since 
Griesbach,  Tittman,  in  his  edition  of  1824,  has  rejected 
this  correction,  and  that  Lachman  has  likewise  adopted 
the  reading  of  the  old  text  in  his  edition  of  1831  ; 
(Scholz,  however,  has  preserved  the  new.) 

2.  Chap.  xi.  6. — In  place  of:  if  by  grace,  then  is  it 
no  more  of  works,  otherwise  grace  is  no  more  grace ; 
but  if  it  be  of  works,  then  it  is  no  more  grace,  othertvise 
work  is  no  mnre  work. 

Griesbach  has  retrenched  the  latter  part  of  the  phrase. 

3.  Chap.  xii.  11. — In  place  of  serving  the  Lord, 
Griesbach  reads  :  serving  the  opportunity. 

It  will  be  observed,  that  this  correction  is  of  two  letters 
in  one  of  the  Greek  words  ;  and  that  also  the  number 


VARIATIONS.  107 

of  the  manuscripts  does  not  justify  the  change.     Again 

here,  Whitby  told  Mill  that  more  than  thirty  manu- 
scripts, that  all  the  ancient  versions,  that  Clement  of 
Alexandria,  St.  Basil,  St.  Jerome,  all  the  annotators  of 
the  Greeks,  and  all  the  Latins,  with  the  exception  of 
Ambrose,  followed  the  ancient  text ;  and  the  two  scho- 
lars we  have  just  named,  (Lachman  and  Tittman,)  the 
one  laboring  at  Berlin,  the  other  a  professor  at  Leipsic, 
have  restored  the  ancient  text,  in  their  respective  editions 
of  the  New  I'estament.  Scholz,  whom  the  learned 
world  appears  to  prefer  to  all  who  have  preceded  him, 
has  done  the  same  in  his  edition  of  1836. 

4.  Chap.  vi.  16 — In  place  of:  whether  of  sin  unto 
death,  or  of  righteousness — Griesbach  reads  :  Whether 
of  sin,  or  of  righteousness ;  but  he  marks  it  with  his 
sign,  which  indicates  merely  a  faint  probability  ;  and 
Tittman  and  Lachman,  in  their  respective  editions,  have 
also  rejected  this  correction.  Mr.  Scholz  has  followed 
them. 

5.  Chap.  xvi.  5. — In  place  of  Achaia,  Griesbach 
reads  Asia. 

We  have  omitted  to  re-notice  the  passage  cut  off  from 
chap.  viii.  1,  because  it  is  restored  in  the  fourth  verse. 

We  see,  then,  that  such  is  the  admirable  integrity  of 
the  Epistle  to  the  Romans.  According  to  Griesbach, 
four  insignifica7it  corrections  in  the  whole  epistle — 
according  to  more  modern  critics,  two  alone,  and  those 
the  most  unimportant  of  the  five ; — and  according  to 

Scholz,  THREE  ! 

We  repeat,  that  we  have  not  chosen  the  Epistle  to 
the  Romans,  as  a  specimen,  for  any  other  reason  than 
its  length  and  its  importance.     We  have  not  taken  the 


108  OBJECTIONS. 

time  to  examine  whether  it  presents  more  or  fewer 
variations  than  any  other  part  of  the  New  Testament. 

We  have  just  run  over,  for  example,  in  Griesbach, 
while  re-perusing  these  last  pages,  the  Epistle  to  the 
Galatians,  written  at  the  same  time  and  upon  the 
same  subject  as  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans  ;  and  we 
have  there  found  only  the  three  following  corrections 
which  may  affect  the  sense,  or  rather,  the  form  of  the 
meaning. 

iv.  17.  They  would  exclude  us  ;  s«^?/,  they  would  ex- 
clude you. 

iv.  26.  She  is  the  mother  of  us  all,  say  :  she  is  mo- 
ther of  us. 

v.  19.  Adultery,  fornication,  impurity,  say :  fornica- 
tion, impurity. 

These  simple  tables,  we  think,  will  speak  to  our  read- 
ers more  forcibly  than  all  our  general  assertions  can  do. 

There  are  some  truths  which  must  be  seen  with  our 
own  ejT-es.  We  have  ourselves  had  the  happy  experi- 
ence of  this.  We  had  read  what  others  have  said  upon 
the  insignificancy  of  the  different  readings  presented  by 
the  manuscripts  ;  we  had  often  studied  the  variations 
of  Mill,  and  the  severe  reproaches  of  his  opponent, 
Whitby  ;*  we  had  examined  the  writings  of  Wetstein, 
of  Griesbach.  of  Lachman,  and  of  Tittman  ;  but  when, 
twice,  in  taking  part  in  the  labor  of  a  new  version  of 
the  New  Testament,  we  had  to  correct  the  French  text 
by  the  most  esteemed  variations,  first  to  introduce  and 
then  to  cut  them  off,  and  then  to  replace,  in  French,  the 
sense  of  the  ancient  reading;  then  we  had  twice,  as  it 
were,  an  intuition  of  this  astonishing  preservation  of  the 
Scriptures  ;  and  we  have  felt  ourselves  penetrated  with 

'  Exameu  variant,  lectionum,  J.  Millii.    Lond.  1710. 


VARIATIONS.  109 

gratitude  towards  that  admirable  Providence  which  has 
ceaselessly  watched  over  the  oracles  of  God,  to  preserve 
their  integrity  so  fully. 

Let  the  objection  we  are  answering  now  be  weighed. 
Let  us  be  shown,  for  instance,  how  three  or  four  varia- 
tions, which  we  have  just  passed  in  review,  in  the 
Epistle  to  the  Romans,  and  which,  in  the  opinion  of  the 
most  modern  critics,  are  reduced  to  two  alone,  or  to 
three,  could  render  the  original  inspiration  an  illusion 
to  us. 

We  admit  that,  here  and  elsewhere  in  the  sacred 
books,  of  the  two  different  readings  of  the  manuscript, 
one  is  the  inspired  word  and  not  the  other :  we  admit 
that  you  must,  in  these  few  cases,  divide  or  suspend  your 
confidence  between  two  expressions;  just  so  far  the  un- 
certainty extends,  but  no  further. 

It  is  calculated  that,  in  the  seven  thousand  nine  hun- 
dred and  fifty-nine  verses  of  the  New  Testament,  there 
are  scarcely  ten  or  twelve  in  Avhich  corrections  in- 
troduced by  the  new  texts  of  Griesbach  and  Scholz, 
at  the  close  of  their  laborious  investigations,  have 
any  weight.  These  moreover  do  not  for  the  most 
part  extend  beyond  the  difference  of  a  single  word,  and 
sometimes  even  of  a  single  letter.  It  may,  perhaps,  be 
well  again  to  introduce  them  here,  as  supplementary  to 
those  which  we  have  pointed  out  in  the  Epistle  to  the 
Romans. 

It  has  been  customary  to  regard  the  following  twelve 
or  thirteen  corrections  as  the  most  important  of  those 
which  have  been  collected  by  Griesbach.  The  first 
four  have  appeared  important,  only  because  they  are 
connected  with  the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ. 

1.  (Acts  XX.  28.)  Instead  of,  "Feed  the  Church  of 
10 


110  OBJECTIONS. 

God,  which  he  hath  purchased  with  his  own  blood ;" 
the  text  of  Griesbach  has,  "  Feed  the  Church  of  the 
Lord,  which  he  has  purchased  with  his  own  blood. 

Here  the  difference  of  the  reading  preferred  by  Gj^s- 
bach  consists  in  a  single  letter  (KY)  instead  of  ( S  Y). 
Scholz  preserves  the  ancient  text. 

2.  (I  Tim.  iii.  16.)  Instead  of,  "  And  it  must  be  con- 
fessed, the  mystery  of  godliness  is  great.  God  has  been 
manifested  in  the  flesh,  justified  in  the  spirit,"  &c.;  some 
manuscripts  read,  "  And  it  must  be  confessed,  the  mys- 
tery of  godliness  is  great,  which  has  been  manifested  in 
the  flesh,  justified  in  the  spirit,"  &c. 

But  a  few  other  manuscripts,  which  Greisbach  haft 
followed,  read,  "  And  it  must  be  confessed,  the  mystery 
of  sfodliness  is  great  ;  that  which  has  been  manifested 
in  the  flesh,  has  been  justified  in  the  spirit,"  &c. 

Here,  again,-  the  difference  is  in  a  single  letter  only, 
or  rather  in  only  two  portions  of  a  letter.  (Some  man 
uscripts,  instead  of  «^',  having  0  J",  and  others  0.) 

Scholz  has  not  admined  these  corrections  of  Gries- 
bach.  Almost  all  the  Greek  manuscripts,  according  to 
him,  have  Oeu^  (God).  He  says  he  found  it  in  the 
cio-hty-six  manuscripts  which  he  himself  examined. 

3.  (Jude  4.)  Instead  of,  '•  Who  deny  our  only  ruler, 
God  and  Lord,  .Tesus  Christ ;"  the  text  of  Griesbach 
and  that  of  Scholz  read,  "  Who  deny  our  only  ruler 
and  Lord,  Jesus  Christ."  Here  the  difference  is  only  in 
those  two  letters,  ei\'  (God,)  omitted  in  the  manuscript 
which  Griesbach  prefers. 

As  to  the  opponents  of  the  Divinity  of  Jesus  Christ 
having  laid  stress  upon  these  first  three  corrections,  in  a 
critical  point  of  view,  we  do  not  marvel,  (it  is  all  they 
can  find  ;)  but  in  a  doctrinal  point  of  view  we  cannot  un- 


VARIATIONS.  1  1 1 

derstand  it,  because  by  their  own  confession,  there  are 
numerous  other  passages  without  variations,  in  which 
our  Lord  is  called  by  the  name  of  God, — the  true  God. 
— the  great  God.  No  Greek  manuscript  for  instance, 
exhibits  variations  in  the  fii"St  verse  of  the  Gospel  by 
St.  John :  ••  In  the  beginning  was  the  Word,  and  the 
Word  was  with  God,  and  the  Word  was  God."* 

Furthermore,  not  a  single  Greek  manuscript  contains 
any  variation  in  the  verse  of  the  Epistle  to  Titus  (ii. 
13. :)  "  Looking  for  the  manifestation  of  the  glory  of  our 
great  God  and  Savior  Jesus  Christ." 

It  is  known  that  Wordsworth,  in  order  to  convince 
himself  of  the  meaning  which  was  attributed  to  this  pas- 
sage, (and  to  the  following  : — Eph.  v.  5  :  2  Thess.  i, 
12;  2  Tim.  iv.  1  ;  Jude  4;  2  Pet.  i.  1  ;  1  Tim.  i.  1.) 
at  the  period  when  the  Greek  was  the  living  language, 
did  not  shrink  from  the  task  of  examining  the  volumi- 
nous writings  of  seventy  Greek  and  sixty  Latin  contem- 
porary fathers  ;  and  he  found  that  they  invariably  un- 
derstood these  constructions  in  the  same  sense,  as  desig- 
nating one  only  and  the  same  person.  During  the  space 
of  a  thousand  years  (from  the  second  to  the  twelfth  cen- 
tury) he  found  fifty-four  authorities  among  the  Greek, 
and  sixty  among  the  Latin  fathers,  who  unanimously 
gave  the  same  sense  to  the  words  of  Paul  (Titus  ii.  13  :) 
••  Our  great  God  and  Saviour."  The  hereticc  them- 
selves, he  observes,  during  the  long  triumph  of  Arian- 
ism,  never  once  thought  of  translating  this  passage  other- 
wise than  ourselves. 

Doubtless  (remarks  the  ArianvBishop  Maximin,  in 

*  One  sinele  manuscript  in  three  hundred  and  fifty,  of  the  eighth  or 
ninth  century,  puts  an  article  before  the  name  of  God,  which  however 
does  not  affect  the  sense. 


1 12  OBJECTIONS. 

the  fifth  century,)  the  Son,  according  to  the  Apostle,  is 
not  a  little  God  (non  pusillus  sed  magnus  Deus,)  but  a 
great  God,  according  to  those  words  of  Paul  (Titus  ii. 
13.)  "  looking  for,"  &c.* 

4.  (1  John  V.  7,  8.)  Instead  of,  "  There  are  three  that 
bear  record  [in  heaven,  the  Father,  the  Word,  and  the 
Holy  Ghost,  and  these  three  are  one  {EN) ;  and  there 
are  three  which  bear  witness]  on  earth,  the  Spirit,  the 
water,  and  the  blood,  and  the  three  agree  in  this  one" 
(TO'  ''EN])  the  text  of  Griesbach  reads,  "  There  are 
three  which  bear  witness  in  the  earth,  the  Spirit  and  the 
water,  and  the  blood  ;  and  these  three  agree  in  that 
ONE."   {T(y"EN.) 

This  is  doubtless  the  most  important  variation,  and  at 
the  same  time  the  best  supported  ;  both  according  to  the 
testimony  of  the  manuscripts  which  have  been  preserved 
to  our  time  (upwards  of  one  hundred  and  forty  against 
three,)  and  also  by  the  universal  silence  of  the  Greek 
fathers  thereon. 

We  should  deviate  from  our  subject,  were  we  here  to 
undertake  a  review  of  the  historical  evidences!  and  the 
grammatical  considerations,  which  on  the  other  hand, 
plead  for  the  preservation  of  the  ancient  text ;  we,  there- 
forp,  confine  ourselves  to  these  two  remarks  of  Bishop 
Middleton. 

First,  Why  is  the  word  the  three  in  the  masculine 

'  See  the  Six  Letters  of  Wordsworth  to  Granville  i^harp. 

t  Those  of  several  Latin  fathers  of  the  second,  third,  fourth,  and  fifth 
centuries  ;  those  of  the  Latin  Vulgate,  more  ancient  than  the  most  ancient 
manuscripts  of  our  pul)lic  libraries  (whii'h  are  said  to  be  of  the  fifth  or 
end  of  the  sixth  century  ;)  and  especially  that  of  the  Confession  of  Faith 
publicly  presented  A.  D.  484,  by  four  hundred  African  Bishoi)s,  to  the 
Itinir  of  the  Vandals,  who  as  an  Arian,  persecuted  them,  and  demanded 
an  account  of  their  doctrines.— (See  the  Dissertations  of  Mill,  Griesbach, 
Bengd,  Wetstein,  and  Lee.) 


VARIATIONS.  113 

in  the  Greek  T^eTg — oi  fiaoivoovfTF:^  whilst  the  words 
spirit,  loater,  and  blood^wiih.  which  ihey  are  connected, 
are  all  neuter  1  It  would  have  been  necessary  to  say 
jo'iu — xu  fxuQxvQovi'xa.  This  irregularity,  which  is  fully 
warranted  (by  that  which  is  grammatically  termed  the 
principle  of  attraction.)  if  the  passage  remained  entire, 
becomes  inexplicable  when  you  would  retrench  the  dis- 
puted words. 

Secondly,  why  especially  the  word  this  one  (t6  £*', 
the  ONE.)  if  a  certain  one  had  not  been  spoken  of  in  the 
preceding  words?  This  expression  (to  et',)  in  this 
case,  would  be  without  example !  Bishop  Middleton 
devotes  eighteen  pages  to  it  in  his  valuable  book  on 
"  The  doctrine  of  the  Greek  Article,"  (8  vo.  Cambridge, 
1828.  pp.  606 — 624.)  "  I  cannot  conceive,"  he  remarks 
in  conclusion,  "  how  this  word,  this  one  (to  sp)  can 
be  reconciled  w^ith  the  retrenchment  of  the  preced- 
ing words.  I  am  not  ignorant  that  the  majority  of 
learned  men  are  in  favor  of  this  omission  ;  but  taking 
all  together,  I  arn  led  to  suspect  that  notwithstanding 
the  immense  labor  which  has  been  bestowed  upon  this 
notable  passage,  there  remains  yet  more  to  do  to  eluci- 
date the  mystery  in  which  it  continues  enveloped." 
The  learned  Bengel  (for  yet  other  reasons,)  said  that 
the  two  verses  of  this  passage  would  remain  united. 
Adamant ind  adhaerentid. 

Scholz  has  retrenched,  as  Griesbach  the  three  hea- 
venly witnesses. 

5.  (Rev.  viii.  13)  Instead  of,  ^^  And  I  beheld  and 
heard  an  angel  flying ^^  &,c.  ;  the  text  of  Griesbach 
and  that  of  Scholz  have  "  And  I  beheld  and  heard  an 
eagle  flying.''^ 

6.  (James  ii.  18.)  Instead  of,  "  Show  me  thy  faith  by 

10* 


1  14  OBJECTIONS, 

thy  works  ;"  the  text  of  Greisbach  and  that  of  Scholz 
have,  "  Show  me  thy  faith  without  works." 

7.  (Acts  xvi.  7.)  Instead  of;  "  But  the  Spirit  suffered 
them  not ;"  the  text  of  Griesbach  and  that  of  Scholz  have ; 
"  But  the  spirit  of  Jesus  suffered  them  not." 

8.  (Eph.  V.  21.)  Instead  of  "submitting  yourselves 
one  to  another  in  the  fear  of  God ;"  the  text  of  Gries- 
bach and  that  of  Scholz  have,  "  submitting  jrourselves 
one  to  another  in  the  fear  of  Christ." 

9.  (Rev.  i.  11.)  Instead  of  "  I  am  Alpha  and  Ome- 
ga, the  first  and  the  last,"  the  text  of  Griesbach  suppres- 
ses these  words,  which  however  he  has  preserved  in  the 
8th  verse  ;  as  also  in  chap.  xxii.  13.  Scholz  has  made 
the  same  correction. 

10.  (Mat.  xix.  17.)  Instead  of  "  Whycallest  thou  me 
good  ?"  the  text  of  Griesbach  reads.,  "  Why  do  you 
enquire  of  me  concerning  the  good  or  (concerning  good- 
ness?") But  Scholz  does  not  admit  this  correction, 
and  has  prtpserved  the  ancient  text. 

11.  (Phil.  iv.  13.)  Instead  of,  "I  can  do  all  things 
through  Christ,  which  str^ngtheneth  me,"  Scholz  has, 
"lean  do  all  things  through  him  who  strengtheneth 
me." 

12.  Lastly,  (Acts  viii.  37  ;  ix.  5,  6;  x.  6.)  The  text 
of  Greisbach  and  that  of  Scholz  suppress  the  37th  verse, 
and  the  words,  "  it  is  hard  for  thee  to  kick  against  the 
pricks  ;  and  he  trembling  and  astonished  said,  Lord, 
what  wilt  thou  have  m:;  to  do?"  and,  "  I  will  tell  thee 
what  thou  must  do." 

Doubtless,  I  repeat,  in  these  passages,  beside  the  va- 
rious readings  wln'ch  thf^  aianuscripts  exhibit,  it  would 
not  be  possibh^  to  k-now  infallibly  which  of  the  readings 
is  that,  which  ought  to  be  regarded  as  the  primitive  text, 


Variations.  1 1^ 

or  word  given  by  God;  but  as  respects  the  sense  of  the 
sentence,  our  incertitude  will  always  be  circumscribed 
within  very  narrow  and  determined  limits.  I  must,  it  is 
true,  choose  between  one  word  and  another,  between 
one  letter  and  another,  but  to  this  all  my  doubts  are  lim- 
ited, and  beyond  this  they  are  not  at  liberty  to  range 
not  only,  in  fact,  have  I  the  assurance  that  the  remaindei 
of  the  text  is  wholly  and  entirely  from  God,  but  I  know 
further,  that  between  the  two  diverse  readings  which  the 
manuscripts  present,  one  of  the  two  is  certainly  the  theo- 
paeustic  word.  Thus  you  perceive,  my  uncertainty  here 
can  only  hesitate  between  the  akernative  of  two  readings, 
almost  always  nearly  identical  one  with  the  other;  whilst 
in  the  system  of  a  partial  inspiration,  on  the  contrary,  the 
field  of  our  doubts  and  incertitude  would  be  illimitable. 
If  the  language  of  the  sacred  scriptures  has  been,  in 
part,  left  to  the  choice  (always  fallible)  of  human  wis- 
dom ;  and  if  divine  wisdom  (alone  infliUible)  has  not 
controlled  and  guaranteed  it,  1  am  unceasingly  ex- 
posed to  the  temptation  of  retrenching,  modifying,  or 
adding  something  to  the  Scriptures. 

Thus,  then,  all  the  efforts  of  the  enemies  of  inspira- 
tion, to  overthrow  our  faith  on  this  ground,  have,  in  the 
end,  only  served  to  establish  it.  They  have  compelled 
the  church  to  follow  them  in  their  investigations,  and 
immediately  afterward  to  precede  them  in  the  same 
work  ;  and  what  have  we  there  discovered  1  It  is,  that 
the  text  is  even  more  pure  than  the  most  pious  men  had 
dared  to  hope  ;  it  is,  that  the  enemies  of  inspiration,  and 
those  of  the  orthodox  doctrines,  at  least  in  Germany, 
have  been  forced  to  admit  it.  They  had  hoped,  after  the 
laborsof  Erasmus,  of  Stephens,  and  of  Mill,to  find,  among 
the  manuscripts  of  our  libraries,  readings  more  favorable 


116  OBJECTIONS. 

to  the  Socinian  doctrines  than  those  which  Beza  and 
Elzevif  employed.  Many  even  imagined  that  the  un- 
certainties would  become  so  great,  and  the  discrepancies 
so  grave,  that  all  evangelical  belief,  positive,  exclusive 
as  ihej  termed  it,  would  be  overthrown.  But  it  is  not 
so.  It  is  now  a  process  terminated;  the  plaintiffs  are 
nonsuited;  the  inquest  having  been  made  by  modern 
criticism,  at  their  request;  all  the  judges,  even  on  the 
rationalist  benches,*  have  pronounced,  with  entire  unani- 
mity, that  it  is  a  lost  case,  and  that  the  objectors  must 
search  elsewhere  for  arguments  and  grievances. 

When  this  question  of  the  integrity  of  the  original 
text  presented  itself  for  the  first  time  to  the  excellent 
and  learned  Bengel,  more  than  a  hundred  and  twenty 
years  ago,  he  was  terrified  at  it ;  his  honest  and  pious 
soul  was  profoundly  troubled  by  it.  Then  began  on 
his  part,  those  labors  of  sacred  criticism  which  gave  a 
new  direction  to  this  science  among  the  Germans. 
The  English  had  preceded  the  Germans  in  it,  but  were 
soon  left  behind  them.  Finally,  after  long  researches, 
Bengel,  in  1721,  happy  and  confirmed,  trusting  and 
grateful,  wrote  to  his  pupil,  Reuss — "  Eat  simply  the 
bread  of  the  Scriptures,  such  as  you  find  it ;  and  be  not 
disturbed,  if  perchance  you  find  here  and  there  a  little 
fragment  of  the  millstone  which  has  fallen  into  it.  You 
may  now  dismiss  all  the  doubts  which  once  so  horribly 
tormented  me.  If  the  Holy  Scriptures,  which  have 
been  copied  so  often,  and  which  have  so  often  passed 
through  the  imperfect  hands  of  fallible  man,  were  abso- 
lutely without  variations,  the  miracle  would  be  so  great, 
that  faith  in  it  would  no  more  be  faith.     I  am  aston- 

*  Read  Michajlis,  torn,  ii,  p.  266.  Eichhorn.    Einleitung,  2  th.  S.  700. 
Edit.  Leips.  1S24. 


VARIATIONS.  I  td 

ished,  on  the  contrary,  that  there  has  resulted  from  all 
the  transcribings,  a  no  greater  number  of  different  read- 
ings "  The  manuscripts  of  the  Comedies  of  Terence, 
which  are  but  six  in  number,*  and  which  have  been 
copied  a  thousand  times  less  frequenti}  than  the  Ne\v 
Testament,  contain  thirty  thousand  variations. 

How  can  we  fail  to  recognise  the  intervention  of  God 
in  this  unanimous  agreement  of  all  the  religious  socie- 
ties of  the  East  and  the  West. — Everywhere  the  same 
scriptures. — What  differences  of  worship  separate  the 
Christians  from  the  Jews  !  and  yet  go  to  our  schools  ; 
examine  our  Hebrew  Testaments  :  then  go  to  their  syn- 
agogues, and  ask  their  rabbis  for  their  sacred  rolls: 
you  will  find  them  the  same  books,  without  the  differ- 
ence of  a  letter! — What  differences  of  worship  separate 
the  Reformed  churches  of  Christendom  from  the  follow- 
ers of  Rome  !  and  yet,  examine  again  ;  you  will  find 
in  our  respective  schools  the  same  Greek  Testament, 
without  the  difference  of  an  iota.  We  receive  theirs, 
as  they  receive  ours,  Erasmus  or  Beza,  Ximenes  or 
Mill,  Scholz  or  Griesbach.  What  distance  separates 
the  Latin  from  this  Greek  Church  who  styles  herself 
also  Catholic,  but  orthodox,  apostolical,  daughter  of 
Antioch,  condemning  the  Romans  as  rebellious  and  schis- 
matic sons  !  yet  ask  each  of  them  for  their  sacred  texts  ; 
you  will  find  no  difference  on  this  point ;  the  variations 
do  not  make  two  distinct  schools  ;  all  use  the  same 
manuscripts ;  from  priests  and  popes,  Munich  and 
Moscow,  you  will  hear  but  one  testimony.  We  all 
then,  Greeks,  Latins  and  Protestants,  must  possess  the 

•  Archives  du  Christianisme.  tome  vii.  No.  17. — Wiseman,  Disc,  on  the 
Relations  of  Science,  tome  ii.  p.  189. 


118  OBJECTIONS. 

same  sacred  book  of  the  New  Testament,  without  the 
difference  of  a  single  iota ! 

We  have  said  enough  on  this  great  fact.  We  were 
not  obliged  to  do  more  than  merely  to  state  it,  in  order 
to  repel  an  objection  ;  for  it  took  us  away  from  our  sub- 
ject. Our  mission  was,  to  prove  a  doctrine,  to  wit,  the 
original  inspiratio?t  of  the  Holy  Scriptures;  and  some 
have  supposed  that  they  could  oppose  us  with  the  objec- 
tion that  if  this  were  a  truth,  yet  it  would  be  rendered 
ineffectual  by  the  alterations  which  this  holy  writing 
must  have  undergone.  We  found  it  necessary  to  show 
that  these  alterations  were  a  vain  and  innocent  phantom. 
We  presented  a  doctrine,  we  say ;  but  they  have  com- 
pelled us  to  make  a  history  ;  we  now  return  to  the  doc- 
trine ;  but,  before  returning,  we  must  yet  once  more  as- 
sert, not  only  that  the  Scriptures  were  inspired  in  the 
day  when  God  caused  them  to  be  written  ;  but  that  this 
word,  inspired  eighteen  hundred  years  ago,  is  now  in 
our  hands  ;  and  we  can  still,  holding  in  one  hand  our 
sacred  text,  and  in  the  other,  all  the  admitted  readings 
collected  by  science  from  seven  hundred  manuscripts,* 
exclaim  with  gratitude  ;  I  hold  then  in  my  happy  hand, 
the  eternal  word  of  my  God! 

SECTION  V. 

Errors  of  Reasoning  or  of  Doctrine. 

"  We  leave  ihe  variations,"  other  opponents  will  say,  "and  wc 
admit  that  the  sacred  text  may  be  regarded  as  the  original  language 
of  the  prophets  and  of  the  apostles ;  but  this  very  text,  pure  as  it 
is,  we  cannot  study,  without  perceiving  the  part  of  it  which  human 
feebleness  has  made.  We  find  in  it  reasonings  badly  conducted 
and  badly  concluded,  quotations  badly  applied,  popular  supersti- 

•  Bcholz  has  counted  G74  msiiiuscripts  for  the  Evangelist.s  alone. 


ERRORS.  1  19 

tions,  prejudices  and  other  infirmities,  the  inevitable  tribute  paid 
by  the  simplicity  of  the  men  of  God  to  the  ignorance  of  their 
times.  '  Saint  Paul,'  says  Jerome  himself,*  '  does  not  know  how 
to  develops  a  hyperbaton,  nor  to  conclixle  a  sentence ;  and  having 
to  do  with  rude  people,  he  has  employed  the  conceptions,  which, 
if,  at  the  outset,  he  had  not  taken  care  to  announce  as  spoken  after 
the  manner  of  men,  would  have  shocked  men  of  good  sense.' 
Such  being  then  the  traces  of  infirmity  which  we  can  follow  in 
the  Scriptures,  it  remains  impossible  to  recognize  in  such  a  book 
an  inspiration  that  goes  even  to  the  lesser  details  of  their  language." 

To  these  accusations  against  the  Scriptures  we  have 
a  fourfold  answer. 

1.  We  set  ourselves  at  once,  with  all  the  energy  of 
our  conviction,  against  such  reproaches.  We  maintain 
that  a  more  attentive  and  more  serious  study  of  the  word 
of  God  would  reduce  them  to  nothing  ;  and  we  protest 
that  they  have  no  foundation  but  in  the  errors  and  pre- 
cipitancy of  those  who  advance  them.  We  might  show 
it  in  repelling  these  accusations,  one  by  one,  in  every 
instance.  It  would  be  a  task  of  greater  length  than 
difficulty  ;  and  this  is  not  the  place  for  it,  because  the 
detail  is  immense.  There  is  not  in  feet,  a  reasoning, 
there  is  not  a  quotation,  there  is  not  a  doctrine,  which 
the  adversaries  of  the  inspiration  of  the  Scriptures  have 
not  at  some  time  made  a  subject  of  reproach  ;  and  every 
one  knows,  that  the  greater  part  of  the  objections  which 
may  be  cl^^arly  stated  in  three  words,  cannot  be  clearly 
refuted  in  less  than  three  pages.  In  proportion  then 
as  the  men  of  the  world  renew  their  attacks,  the  church 
must  renew  her  replies ;  and  like  those  respectful  and 
indefatigable  servants,  who  in  the  East,  watch  day  and 
night  around  the  head  of  their  king,  she  must  constantly 

*  Comm.  on  Galatians  (Bk.  11.)— Tit.  (Bk.  1  on  i.  1.)  and  Ephes.— (Bk. 
11.  on  3.  1.) 


120  OBJECTIONS. 

hold  herself  by  the  side  of  the  word  of  God,  to  repel 
from  it  those  swarms  of  objections  which  are  seen,  just 
as  fast  as  they  are  driven  from  one  side,  rising  on  the 
other,  and  incessantly  returning  to  plant  anew^  their 
sting.  The  experience  of  every  age,  and  especially  that 
of  the  latter  times  has  sufficiently  shown,  that  before  an 
impartial  examination,  these  difficulties,  which  they  op- 
pose to  the  Scriptures,  vanish  ;  these  obscurities  are  il- 
luminated ;  and  quickly,  unexpected  harmonies,  beauties 
that  until  then  no  human  eye  had  perceived,  are  re- 
veah^d  in  the  word  of  God  by  the  objections  themselves. 
To-day,  objects  of  doubt ;  to-morrow,  better  studied,  they 
are  incentives  to  faith;  to-day,  sources  of  trouble,  to- 
morrow they  are  proofs. 

2.  In  the  meantime  we  notice  all  these  accusations 
which  the  adversaries  of  the  full  inspiration  of  the  Scrip- 
tures raise  against  this  sacred  book  ;  for  it  is  an  advan- 
tage which  they  give  us.  Yes,  we  shall  not  hesitate  to 
say  it ;  in  the  hearing  of  such  objections,  we  experience 
at  the  same  time,  two  opposite  impressions  of  satisfaction 
and  of  sadness  ;  of  sadness  in  seeing  men  who  recognize 
the  Bible  as  a  revelation  of  God.  not  fearing  at  the  same 
time  to  raise  against  it  so  hastily  the  gravest  accusa- 
tions ;  and  of  satisfliction,  in  considering  with  what  force 
such  language  at  last  confirms  the  doctrine  we  defend. 

In  the  mouth  of  a  deist,  they  would  be  objections  to 
which  we  must  reply,  but  in  that  of  a  christian  who  ad- 
vances them,  it  is  a  flagrant  abandonment  of  his  own 
thesis,  and  an  avowal  of  all  the  evil  involved  in  such 
abandonment. 

We  would  be  understood  :  it  is  not  before  the  profess- 
ed infid'  1  that  we  here  maintain  the  plenary  inspiration 
of  the  Scriptures ;  it  is  before  men  who  profess  to  con- 


ERRORS.  121 

sider  the  Bible  as  a  revelation  from  God.  Inspiration, 
we  have  said  to  them,  is  a  doctrine  taught  in  this  sacred 
book :  by  its  own  testimony,  all  Scripture  is  given  of 
God,  it  is  perfect,  it  is  puie,  it  is  gold  seven  times  tried 
in  the  fire.  What  reply  have  they  made?  They  do 
not  reject,  they  say,  such  an  inspiration,  except  in  re- 
gard to  the  language,  the  forms  of  speech,  and  the  un- 
important details  ;  otherwise  they  believe  that  a  constant 
providence  directed  the  minds  of  the  sacred  writers,  to 
keep  them  from  every  grave  error.  But  how  do  they 
prove  this  thesis  ?  Is  it  to  the  language  alone,  is  it  to 
the  forms  of  speech,  is  it  to  insignificant  details  that  they 
confine  this  rejection  of  inspiration  ?  Alas  !  hear  them : 
"  there  are  in  the  doctrines,  superstitions  ;  there  are  in 
the  quotations,  misrepresentations,  there  are  in  the  rea- 
sonings, infirmities !" — You  see  then,  that  in  order  to 
attack  the  plenary  inspiration  of  the  Scriptures,  they 
come  down  thus  into  the  ranks  of  the  unbelievers,  who 
are  casting  stones  at  the  word  of  God  :  and  if  they  do 
not  wish,  like  them,  to  take  God  from  the  holy  Bible, 
they  at  least  wish  to  correct  God  in  the  holy  Bible. 
Which  of  the  two  is  most  outrageous,  it  would  be  diffi- 
cult to  say. 

We  conclude  then,  that  since  the  doctrine  of  ple- 
nary inspiration  can  be  combatted  only  by  accusing  the 
word  of  God  of  error,  we  must  cling  the  more  firmly 
to  this  declaration  of  the  Scriptures,  that  "all  Scripture 
is  given  by  inspiration  of  God." 

3.  But  we  have  something  yet  more  serious  to  add. 
We  ask  :  Avhere  will  you  stop  when  you  have  once  en- 
tered on  this  path  1  And  by  what  reasons  will  you  in 
your  turn  stop  those  who  wish  to  go  still  beyond  you  1 
You  dare  to  correct  one  part  of  the  word  of  God  :  by 
U 


122  OBJECTIONS. 

what  right  then  will  you  blame  those  who  may  wish  to 
correct  the  rest  ?  Beings  of  yesterday,  whilst  they  are 
traversing  this  earth  as  a  shadow,  with  the  eternal  book 
of  God  in  their  hands,  they  dare  to  say  :  This,  Lord,  is 
worthy  of  thee,  this  is  unworthy  of  thee  !  They  pre- 
tend to  select  for  themselves  in  the  oracles  of  God,  to 
ascribe  one  part  of  it  to  the  folly  of  man,  to  separate  the 
mistakes  of  Isaiah  or  Moses,  the  prejudices  of  Peter  or 
of  Jude,  the  paralogisms  of  Paul,  the  superstitions  of 
John  from  the  thought  of  God  !  Lamentable  rashness ! 
We  repeat  it ;  where  will  they  stop  in  this  fatal  work  ; 
for  they  place  themselves  at  the  very  table,  on  the  one 
side  of  which,  are  seated  the  Socinuses,  the  Grimaidis, 
the  Priestleys  ;  and  on  the  other,  the  Rousseaus,  the 
Volneys,  the  Dupuis,  Between  them  and  Eichhorn^ 
between  them  and  William  Cobbett,  between  them  and 
Strauss,  where  is  the  difference  ?  It  is  in  the  species, 
not  in  the  genus.  It  is  in  the  quantity  of  the  imputa- 
tions of  errors  and  of  irreverent  remarks  ;  it  is  not  in 
the  quality.  There  is  some  difference  in  their  boldness, 
none  in  their  profaneness.  The  one  and  the  other  have 
found  errors  in  the  word  of  God ;  they  have  both  pre- 
tended to  rectify  them.  But,  we  ask,  is  it  less  absurd, 
on  the  part  of  a  creature,  to  wish  to  improve  in  God's 
creation,  the  hyssop  that  cometh  out  of  the  wall,  than 
that  of  the  cedar  of  Lebanon  ;  to  pretend  to  rectify  the 
organization  of  a  glow-worm,  than  to  wish  to  increase 
the  light  of  the  sun  ?  By  what  right  will  ministers, 
who  say  that  they  see  nothing  but  the  language  of  Jew- 
ish prejudices  in  the  accounts  given  by  the  Evangelists, 
of  the  demoniacs  and  the  miracles  of  Jesus  Christ  driv- 
ing out  the  impure  spirits  ;  by  what  right  will  they  pro- 
I'ounce  it  strange  that  another  sees  in  the  miracles  of 


ERRORS.  123 

Saul's  conversion,  of  the  resurrection,  of  the  multiplica- 
tion of  bread,  or  of  the  day  of  Pentecost,  nothing  but  a 
discreet  and  useful  compliance  with  the  ignorance  of  a 
people  fond  of  the  marvellous  ?  By  what  authority 
would  a  professor,  who  denies  the  inspiration  of  Paul's 
arguments,  blame  Mr.  De  Wette  for  rejecting  that  of 
the  prophecies  of  the  old  Testament,*  or  of  Mr.  Wirg- 
mann  making  his  separation  of  the  New  Testament,^ 
or  Mr.  Strauss  changing  into  fable  the  miracles  and  the 
very  person  of  Jesus  Christ? 

Three,  or  four  years  since,  a  young  minister  of  Berne, 
put  into  our  hands  a  manual  of  theology  which,  he  said, 
had  been  handed  him  in  an  academy  in  Eastern  Switz- 
erland. We  have  not  retained  the  name  of  the  author, 
nor  that  of  his  residence  ;  but  having,  at  the  time,  taken 
notes  of  his  principal  arguments  against  the  plenary  in- 
spiration of  the  Scriptures,  we  can  reproduce  here  the 
quotations  by  which  he  sought  to  prove  that  the  holy 
books,  containing  evident  errors,  cannot  be  entirely  the 
word  of  God.  It  will  be  understood  that  we  do  not 
mean  here  to  reply  to  him.  We  wish  only  to  give  a 
specimen  of  his  rashness. 

^'  St.  Paul  says  (1  Cor.  v.  5.)  that  he  had  '  delivered 
an  incestuous  man  to  Satan.'  This  passage,  (evidently 
fanatical  ;)   could  it  be  inspired  ! 

''  He  says  to  them  (1  Cor  vi.  3.)  that  '  we  shall  judge 
the  angels,' — a  gnostic  reverie  without  doubt.  Could 
such  a  passage  have  been  inspired  ! 

*  That  was  his  opinion  some  j'enrs  ago.  We  do  not  know  whether 
this  professor,  who.se  science  and  candor  in  his  translation  of  the  New 
Testament  we  admire,  may  not  have  retracted  sucli  assertions. 

t  That  was  the  title  of  his  book. — He  intends  by  it,  the  separation  or  di- 
vision of  the  New  Testament,  into  Wurd  of  Gud,  or  moral  precepts,  and 
Wurd  of  r,ian,  or  facts  o{  the  sensible  world. 


124  OBJECTIONS 

"  He  goes  on  even  to  say  to  them  that  '  in  conse- 
quence of  unworthy  communion  many  of  them  are  sick, 
and  some  are  dead,'  (1  Cor.  xi.  30.)  This  passage 
could  not  be  inspired  ! 

"  He  says  to  them  again,  that  '  all  die  in  Adam,' — 
(1  Cor.  XV.  22) — Jewish  superstition.  It  is  impossible 
that  such  a  passage  can  be  inspired  ! 

"  And  when  Saint  Paul  assures  the  Thessalonians, 
(1  Th.  iv.  15.)  and  when  St.  James  repeats  (Jam.  v.  8,) 
that  'the  coming  of  the  Lord  is  near,'  could  so  manifest 
an  error  be  inspired  !"* 

It  is  then  in  this  manner  that  they  dare  to  judge  the 
eternal  word  !  We  do  not  yet  know,  we  have  said, 
whether  these  doctrines,  professed  in  Switzerland,  ten  or 
twelve  years  since,  were  taught  particularly  at  Zurich. 
But.  if  they  there  had  currency,  we  must  exculpate  the 
magistrates  of  that  city.f  It  was  not  they  who  called 
Strauss  into  their  country,  to  overthrow  the  faith  of  an 
entire  people  ;  for  Strauss,  it  might  be  said,  was  al- 
ready in  their  professorial  chairs,  if  such  doctors  as  this 
were  there  giving  instructions.  They  had  seen  them 
with  great  scissors  in  their  hands,  cutting  out  of  the 
Scriptures  the  errors  of  the  holy  Apostles.  What  dif- 
ference could  they  perceive  between  such  men  and  him 
whom  they  were  calling? — a  little  more  science,  a  little 
more  boldness  and  consistency  in  his  principU  s  ;    with 

•  We  have  not  thought  it  our  duty  to  reply  to  such  Hccnsntions.  It 
would  1)6  to  depart  from  our  subject.  The  coniing  of  the  Lord  is  near  to 
each  one  of  un  ;  from  one  instant  to  another,  three  brtfiilis  .>ep:u ale  us 
from  it.  When  a  iii;m  dies,  he  is  immediately  tran.sported  into  the  day 
of  Jesus  Chri-st.  As  to  the  distance  of  that  day  relatively  to  this  world, 
judge  from  1  Thoss.  ii.  2.  if  the  .\])ostle  Paul  vva.s  mistaken. 

T  Allusion  is  here  made  to  tlie  call  of  Strauss  to  the  professorship  ot 
ThecIo?y  in  till-  University,  by  ilie  magistrates;  wliich  was  resisted  by 
forty  thousand  of  the  peo])U-,  and  resisted  successfully. 


ERRORS.  125 

a  longer  and  sharper  instrument  in  his  more  skilful 
hands  ;  but  scarcely  more  contempt  in  his  heart  for  the 
word  of  God  !  We  see  but  little  difft-rence  between  the 
several  judges  of  the  Sanhedrim  who  struck  Jesus  on 
the  face,  because  some  struck  fewer  blows  than  others  ; 
and  when  sixty  conspirators,  in  Pomppy's  palace,  over- 
threw Caesar  from  his  golden  throne  in  the  midst  of  the 
Senate  ;  Casca,  who  first  slightly  wounded  him  with 
his  sword,  was  not  less  his  murderer  than  Cassius 
cleaving  his  hp-ad,  or  than  the  sixty  conspirators  shewing 
him  their  blades  on  every  side,  and  piercing  him  with 
twenty-three  wounds.  Is  then  the  teacher  who  denies 
the  inspiration  of  an  argument  or  of  a  doctrine  of  the 
Scriptures,  less  in  revolt  against  the  God  of  the  Scrip- 
tures, than  he  who  rejects  the  inspiration  of  an  entire 
book  ?     We  think  he  is  not. 

We  conclude  that,  since  in  order  to  deny  the  plenary 
inspiration  of  the  Scriptures,  we  must  enter  into  the  road 
of  rashness,  and  give,  by  the  first  strokes  of  the  sword, 
the  signal  of  all  opposition  to  the  word  of  God  ;  a  closer 
attention  should  be  paid  to  this  declaration  of  the  Holy 
Spirit :  "  All  Scripture  is  given  by  inspiration  of  God." 
But  we  have  yet  another  reflection. 

4.  You  do  not  understand  the  divinity,  the  propriety, 
the  wisdom,  the  utility  of  such  or  such  a  passage  of  the 
Scriptures,  and  therefore  you  deny  its  inspiration.  Is 
that  an  argument  of  any  real  value,  we  will  not  say  in 
our  eyes,  but  in  yours  ?  Who  are  you  ?  "  W^hcn  thou 
goest  into  the  house  of  God,"  feeble  child  of  man.  '•  keep 
thy  foot ;  be  swift  to  hear,  be  slow  to  speak,  and  do  not 
offer  tlie  sacrifice  of  fools  ;  for  they  know  not  what  they 
do.      God  is  in  heaven,  and  thou  art  upon  the  earth."* 

•  Eccl.  V.  1,  2. 
11* 


126  OBJECTIONS. 

Who  art  thou  then,  to  judge  the  oracles  of  God  ?  Has 
not  the  Bible  said  of  itself  beforehand,  that  it  would  be 
"  a  stumbling-block  to  some,  and  foolishness  to  others  ;" 
that  "the  natural*man  should  not  comprehend  it,  that 
indeed  he  could  not,  and  that  it  is  only  to  be  known  by 
the  Spirit  ?"*  Should  you  not  then  have  expected  to 
feel  some  repugnance  in  your  mind,  in  your  heart, 
even  in  your  conscience,  against  its  first  instructions  ? 
Man  must  come  back  to  his  own  place  as  an  infirm, 
ignorant  and  depraved  creature.  He  can  understand 
God  only  by  becoming  humble.  Let  him  bend  the 
knee  in  his  closet ;  let  him  pray,  and  he  will  compre- 
hend. An  argument  is  inconsequent,  because  you  do 
not  apprehend  it!  a  doctrine  is  a  prejudice,  because 
you  do  not  admit  it!  a  quotation  is  inaccurate,  because 
you  have  not  discovered  its  true  meaning  !  What  would 
remain  in  the  world,  if  God  should  leave  in  it  only  what 
you  can  explain  ?  The  Roman  Emperors,  being  able 
to  comprehend  neither  the  faith  nor  the  life  of  our  mar- 
tyrs, threw  them  to  the  wild  beasts  in  the  amphitheatre, 
and  caused  them  to  be  dragged  to  the  Tiber.  It  is  thus 
that  men  throw  their  ignorance  as  a  vile  grapple  upon  the 
word  of  God,  and  drag  to  the  scaflTold  that  which  they 
could  not  comprehend  and  which  they  have  condemned  I 
We,  recollect  in  writing  these  lines,  an  author,  other- 
wise honorable,  but  imbued  with  the  wisdom  of  his  age, 
who  undertook  to  prove  that  the  reasonings  of  St.  Paul 
are  not  inspired.  To  show  it,  he  cited,  as  a  convincing 
example,  the  passage  in  Galatians,  iii.  16,  in  which 
Paul  designs  not  to  prove,  (observe  it  well,  all  the  solu- 
tion is  there.)  not  to  prove,  but  to  affirm  that  the  pro- 
raise  made  by  God  to  Abraham  and  his  poslerily,  re- 

•  1  Cor.  xi.  14. 


ERRORS.  127 

garded  not  all  his  descendants^  (since  it  was  sufficiently 
manifest  that  his  descendants  by  Hagar,  by  Keturah 
and  by  Esau,  had  been  rejected,)  but  a  particular  pos- 
terity, elect  and  personal.  And  what  does  this  pro- 
fessor, in  order  to  establish  his  thesis  upon  this  passage? 
He  lends  the  apostle  an  argument  so  puerile,  that  the 
smallest  child  of  the  Galatians  might  have  reproved 
him  for  it.  Saint  Paul,  according  to  him,  instead  of 
simply  affirming  a  fact,  reasoned  from  the  singular  of 
a  collective  noun  to  prove  that  such  a  word  could  mean 
to  designate  only  one  person !  "  Absurd  to  us,"  he 
says  ;  "  this  argument  might  have  been  good  for  Jews, 
or  the  rude  Gauls  of  Asia  Minor.  We  give  this  one 
example.     It  were  easy  to  produce  a  hundred  like  it. 

Might  the  author  be  permitted  to  refer  in  this  matter 
to  his  own  experience,  he  would  recal  with  as  much 
humiliation  as  gratitude,  his  first  and  his  last  impres- 
sions produced  by  the  Epistles  of  St.  Paul.  He  had 
already  been  convinced  in  his  earliest  years,  that  the 
Bible  is  from  God  ;  but  he  had  not  yet  understood  the 
doctrine  it  teaches.  He  wished  to  respect  the  pages  of 
the  apostle,  because  he  had  seen  by  other  characters, 
that  the  inimitable  seals  of  the  most  High  God  were 
attached  to  them  ;  but  a  secret  trouble  agitated  him  in 
reading  them,  and  turned  him  towards  other  books.  St. 
Paul  appeared  to  him  to  reason  falsely  ;  not  to  reach 
his  point ;  to  speak  ambiguously  and  in  an  embarras- 
sing manner  ;  to  make  long,  spiral  windings  around 
his  subject ;  and  to  say  the  things  committed  to  him 
quite  otherwise  than  was  designed  by  him  who  revealed 
them.  In  a  word,  he  felt,  in  reading  them,  as  would  a 
tender  and  respectful  son,  by  the  side  of  a  father  who  is 
declining,  who  has  lost  his  memory,  and  who  talks 


128  OBJECTIONS. 

stammering•l3^  Oh  !  how  would  he  conceal  from  others, 
and  not  admit  it  to  himself,  that  his  venerable  father  is 
sinking,  and  seems  no  more  like  himself!  But  as  soon 
as  Divine  grace  had  revealed  to  us  this  doctrine  of  jus- 
tification by  faith,  which  is  the  ardent  and  brilliant 
flame  of  the  Scriptures,  then,  each  word  became  light, 
harmony  and  life  ;  the  reasonings  of  the  apostle  appeared 
to  us  as  limpid  as  the  water  from  the  rock,  his  thoughts 
profound  and  practical,  all  his  epistles  the  power  o[  God 
to  salvation  to  them  that  believe.  We  saw  abundant 
proofs  of  divinity  beaming  from  those  very  passages 
which  had  given  us  so  long  disquiet,  and  we  could  say 
with  the  joy  of  a  discovery,  and  with  the  gratitude  of  a 
tender  adoration,  as  we  felt  vibrating  within  us,  in 
unison  with  the  word  of  God,  chords  inimitable,  and 
until  then,  untouched  :  "  Yes,  my  God,  all  thy  Scrip- 
tures are  divinely  inspired !" 
But  it  is  insisted  that  there  are  : 

SECTION  VI. 

Errors  in  the  Narrations ;  Contradictions  in  the  Facts. 

"  We  will  leave,"  say  they,  "  if  we  must,  all  these  just  repug- 
nances against  the  reasonings  or  the  doctrines  of  the  sacred  wri- 
ters ;  in  admitting,  that  upon  these  points,  that  which  is  difficult 
to  some,  may  be  easy  to  others.  But  if  now  we  appeal  to  facts, 
if  we  show  that  there  are  manifest  contradictions  in  the  narrations 
of  the  Bible,  in  its  dates,  in  its  references  to  contemporary  history, 
in  its  scriptural  quotations ;  you  may  then,  perhaps,  reproach  us 
for  having  seen  them,  for  not  being  consistent  with  ourselves,  and 
for  going  in  that  beyond  our  own  position.  Notwithstanding  this ; 
those  are  facts  which  no  inconsistency  of  reasoning  can  annul, 
and  which  no  argument  can  destroy.  An  argument  no  more  de- 
stroys, than  creates  facts.  If,  then,  these  contradictions  exist,  you 
may,  indeed,  convict  our  doctrine  of  insutficiencv ;  but  they  rise 
three  times  as  high  against  yours,  to  accuse  it  of  error." 


ERRORS.  129 

We  will  commence  by  admitting,  that  if  it  be  true 
that  there  are,  as  they  say  there  are,  erroneous  state- 
ments and  contradictory  accounts  in  the  holy  Scriptures, 
their  plenary  inspiration  must  be  renounced.  But  this 
is  not  the  case.     These  pretended  errors  do  not  exist. 

We  shall  admit,  without  hesitation,  that,  among  the 
numerous  attacks  made  on  the  m.inutest  details  of  the 
statements  of  our  sacred  books,  there  are  some  which, 
at  first  sight,  may  occasion  some  embarrassment ;  but 
as  soon  as  we  contemplate  them  more  closely,  these  dif- 
ficulties are  explained  and  vanish.  We  shall  give  some 
examples,  taking  care  to  choose  from  among  those 
which  the  opponents  of  plenary  inspiration  have  ap- 
peared to  regard  as  the  most  insurmountable. 

We  shall  pref;\ce  them  with  some  observations. 

1.  The  Scriptures  have  had,  in  every  age,  their  ene- 
mies and  their  defenders,  their  Celsuses  as  well  as  their 
Origens,  their  Porphyrys  as  well  as  their  Eusebiuses, 
their  Castellios  as  well  as  their  Calvins,  their  Strausses 
as  well  as  their  Hengstenbergs.  Sixteen  hundred  years 
ago,  Malchus  Porphyry,  that  learned  and  malignant 
Syrian,  who  lived  in  Sicily  under  the  reign  of  Diocle- 
tian, and  whom  Jerome  calls  rabidum  adreravs  Chris- 
tum canem*  wrote  fifteen  books  against  Christianity. 
Of  these  fifteen  books,  the  fourth  was  directed  against 
the  Pentateuch,  the  twelfth  and  the  thirteenth  against 
Daniel ;  and  the  first  was  entirely  consecrated  to  collect- 
ing all  the  contradictions  [(ii-TlXojtag  harTiocfuvri) 
which  he  pretended  he  had  found  in  the  Scriptures.f 

•  A  dog  enraged  against  Christ. 

t  Tdv  KuQ^rtiKov  cviTKCvrjv  vrr^pPoXri  niaois  iTpo0ePXfjixsvov, — Emplnying 
agaivst  us  artifice,  wilh  the  exaggeration  that  hatred  "prompts,  says  Euse- 
bius,  in  speaking  o.''  him.  Euseb.  Prepar.  Evangel,  lib.  x.  chap,  ix.,  and 
Euseb.  Hist.  Eccl.  vi.  19. 


130  OBJECTIONS. 

From  Celsus  and  Porphyry,  down  to  the  English  infi- 
dels of  the  eighteenth  century  ;  and  fiom  them  to 
Strauss,  who  had  done  little  more  than  copy  them,  ac- 
cording to  his  own  avowal  ;*  they  have  not  ceased  to 
seek  new  contradictions,  in  comparing  Scripture  with 
Scripture,  line  with  line,  word  with  word,  detail  with 
detail.  It  was  easy  then  to  multiply  them,  and  even  to 
find  some  that  are  specious,  in  a  book,  eminently  com- 
posed of  anecdotes,  where  the  narratives  of  the  same 
events  are  repeated  under  various  forms,  by  different  his- 
torians, in  different  circumstances,  with  various  objects, 
and  with  greater  or  less  development.  From  that,  the 
reader  should  perceive,  that  this  fifth  objection,  which  is 
composed  of  only  detached  observations,  and  which  re- 
solves itself  into  an  infinitude  of  little  details,  can  be  re- 
futed only  in  detail  and  by  detached  answers.  It  is,  ac- 
cordingly, an  exhaustless  subject.  To  each  passage  an 
objection,  to  each  objection  a  reply.  Our  only  general 
answer  then  must  be  :  examine,  and  the  obscurity  will 
vanish. 

Moreover  it  is  understood  by  all  parties,  that  the  pre- 
tended contradictions  which  the  enemies  of  inspiration 
present,  have  in  themselves  no  religious  importance,  and 
regard  only  dates,  numbers  or  other  very  minute  circum- 
stances. But,  if  they  cannot  affect  Christian  doctrine 
directly,  they  do  not  the  less  tend  to  overthrow  the  ple- 
nary inspiration  of  the  Scriptures.  We  mrjst  then  reply 
to  them,  as  the  friends  of  religion  in  every  age  have 
done  ;  and  as  has  just  been  done  with  such  honorable 
success,  by  Mr.  Hengstenberg  of  Berlin,  and  by  Rous- 


*  This  he  has  himself  avowed,  on  the  cruical  review  of  the  gospels  ex- 
amined and  collected  from  Celsus  to  Paulus,  and  even  to  the  fragmenis  of 
Wolfenbiiltel. 


ERRORS.  131 

sel  in  France,  by  Barett,  Haley,  Gerard,  Dick,  Home 
and  others  in  England. 

2.  It  is  very  easy  to  say  in  a  general  way  and  with  a 
peremptory  tone,  that  there  are  contradictions  in  the 
Bible:  and  it  has  often  happened  that  unreflecting 
Christians,  although  pious,  have  not  given  themselves 
the  trouble  of  looking  more  closely  into  the  subject,  and 
have  adopted  loose  maxims  on  inspiration,  before  hav- 
ing sufficiently  studied  on  one  side,  the  general  testimony 
of  the  Scriptures  on  this  doctrine,  and  on  the  other,  the 
nature  of  the  objections  which  they  have  made.  We 
have  seen  them  then  looking  into  their  own  minds, 
rather  than  the  Bible,  for  a  mitigated  system  of  inspira- 
tion, which  might  be  reconciled  with  the  supposed  exist- 
ence of  some  errors  in  the  word  of  God.  Such  was 
the  doctrine  of  Socinus,*  of  Castellio.f  and  of  some 
others  in  the  sixteenth  century  ;  but  it  was  then  sternly 
rejected  by  all  pious  men.  "  This  is  not,"  said  Fran- 
cis Turretin,!  "  to  defend  the  cause  against  the  atheists, 
but  basely  to  betray  it."  "  We  must  not,  for  the  sake 
of  reconciling  them,  admit  that  the  Scriptures  are  false,"  ^ 
said  the  learned  and  pious  Peter  Martyr,  the  "  wonder 
of  Italy,"  as  Calvin  calls  him.  In  our  days,  the  re- 
spectable Pye  Smith II  in  England,  and  the  worthy 
Bishop  of  Calcutta,*![  have  indulged  in  expressions, 
which  we  deplore,  and  which  probably  they  would  cor- 
rect, if  they  had  to  make  them  anew.  And  in  Berlin, 
the  learned  rector  of  the  University,  Mr.  Twesten,  whose 

*  De  iiistoril.  Scrip.  t  In  Dialo£ris. 

t  Hoc  noil  est  causam  tueri  adversus  atheos,  sed  illara  turpiter  prodere. 
Theol.  elencht;  torn.  1,  p.  74. 

§  is'oii  est  eo  concedeiiduin,  ad  ea  concilianda,  iit  dicamus  codicem  sa- 
crum rnendosuTn.     On  1  Kings  viii.  17. 

Il  Dcft-iice  of  Dr.  HalTiier's  Preface  to  Bible. 

U  xii.  Lect.  on  Evid.  of  Christianity. 


1 32  OBJECTIONS. 

labors  and  reputation  we  honor  in  other  respects,  has 
not  feared  to  saj  in  his  Dogmatik,*  that,  "all  is  not 
equally  inspired  in  the  Bible,  and  that  if  we  admit  no 
errors  in  the  details  of  the  evangelical  narrations,  we 
shall  be  thrown  into  inextricable  difficulties  to  explain 
them."  And  what  examples  does  he  give  to  justify,  in. 
passing,  such  maxims?  He  quotes  two  of  the  passages 
which  we  are  going  to  exhibit ;  (the  first,  that  of  the 
blind  men  of  Jericho,  the  seventh,  that  of  the  census  of 
Cyrenius.)  The  reader  will  be  able  to  judge  fiom  these 
instances,  of  the  facility  with  which  men  abandon  the 
testimony  that  the  Scriptures  give  of  their  own  entire  in- 
spiration. 

We  will  now  present  some  examples,  both  of  these 
imagined  contradictions,  and  of  the  causes  of  this  precip- 
itancy in  regarding  as  contradictory,  certain  passages, 
which  a  little  reflection  might  have  reconciled. 

We  have  said,  and  we  repeat  it,  that  not  being  able  to 
introduce  many  instances,  we  have  taken  pains  to  select 
those  which  the  opponents  have  considered  most  embar- 
rassing. 

Since  the  publication  of  the  first  edition  of  this  work, 
many  pious  persons  have  reproached  us  for  solving  dif~ 
ficukies  which  did  not  trouble  them,  and  for  leaving  un- 
solved what  to  them  needs  explanation.  We  have  but 
one  general  remark  to  make  on  this  point ;  that  as  the 
degree  of  difficulty  is  a  relative  thing,  it  is  impossible 
that  one  should  be  able  to  judge  for  all  others  ;  and  it  is 
impossible  to  meet  all  the  difficulties  which  any  truth 
will  present  to  some  minds. 

First  Cause  of  Rash  Conclusions. — The  comple- 

•  Vorlesungeri  liber  die  Dogmatik.  torn.  I.  p.  421—429.    ITamburg,  1829- 


ERRORS.  133 

ment  of  the  circumstances  of  two  events  which  occurred 
in  the  East,  eighteen  centuries  ago,  remains  unknown, 
because  the  sacred  historians  relate  them  to  us  with  an 
admirable  brevity.  Yet,  men  have  hastened,  because 
the  story  does  not  explain  the  mode  of  reconciling  two 
of  their  features,  to  pronounce  them  contradictory  !  No- 
thing is  more  irrational.  Suppose,  to  give  an  example 
not  in  the  Scriptures,  that  a  Hindoo  Pundit  had  just 
been  reading  three  succinct,  but  very  accurate,  histories 
of  the  illustrious  Napoleon.  The  first  shall  inform  him 
that  the  taking  of  Paris,  preceded  by  a  great  effusion  of 
blood  at  the  gates  of  that  capital,  made  his  abdication 
necessary,  and  that  an  English  frigate  was  to  transport 
him  immediately  to  an  island  of  the  Mediterranean.  A 
second  relates,  that  this  great  captain,  conquered  by  the 
English,  who  took  possession  of  Paris  without  a  blow, 
was  transported  by  them  to  St.  Helena,  whither  Gene- 
ral Bertrand  wished  to  follow  him,  and  where  he  fin- 
ished his  days  in  the  arms  of  this  faithful  servant.  A 
third  relates,  that  the  fallen  Emperor  was  accompanied 
in  his  exile  by  the  Generals  Gourgaud,  Bertrand,  and 
Montholon.  All  these  statements  are  accurate,  and  yet, 
"  how  many  flat  contradictions  in  so  few  words  !"  ex- 
claims the  learned  citizen  of  Benares.  "  St.  Helena,  in 
the  Mediterranean  !"  Who  does  not  know  that  it  rises, 
a  great  rock  in  the  Atlantic  ?  First  contradiction  :  one 
of  these  books  is  false,  it  must  be  rejected.  And  again, 
Paris  taken  without  a  blow ;  and  Paris  taken  after  a 
bloody  combat  at  its  gates !  second  contradiction. — And 
again,  here  one  general,  there  three  generals!  third 
contradiction. 

Compare   now  these  supposed   contradictions   with 
12 


134  OBJECTIONS. 

many  of  the  objections  raised  against  the  narratives  of 
the  Evangelists  i 

Fir  si  example. — Mark  (xvi.  5.)  tells  us  that  the  wo- 
men saw  A  YOUNG  MAN  (one  only.)  seated  on  the  right 
side  .  .  .  who  said  to  them  :  Be  not  afraid  .  .  .  you 
seek  Jesus  of  Nazareth  who  was  crucified  .  .  .  he  is 
riseyi  again. 

A.jd  Luke  relates,  (xxiv.  4.,)  that  two  men  'presented 
themselres  to  them  .  .  .  ivho  said  to  them  :  Why  seek 
ye  the  living  among  the  dead  ?  He  is  not  here,  he  is 
risen. 

They  present  these  passages  to  us  as  irreconcilable  : 
but  wherefore?  There  is  a  difference,  unquestionably ; 
but  there  is  neither  contradiction  nor  disagreement  be- 
tween the  statements.  Must  they  be  identical  in  order 
to  be  true  ?  It  is  sufficient  that  they  are  true,  especially 
in  histories  so  admirably  succinct.  Does  it  not  often 
happen  to  us,  without  ceasing  to  be  exact,  that  we  relate 
to  two  persons  successively  the  same  story  in  two  very 
different  ways  ?  And  why  might  not  the  apostles  do 
the  same  ?  St  Luke  tells  us  that  two  persons  met  the 
women,  while  St.  Mark  speaks  only  of  that  one,  who 
having  alone  rolled  away  the  stone,  was  seated  at  the 
right  side  of  the  sepulchre,  and  who  spoke  to  them. 
Thus  one  of  Napoleon's  biographers  mentions  three 
generals,  whilst  the  other,  with  no  less  accuracy,  speaks 
of  Bertrand  alone.  Thus  Moses,  after  having  shown 
us  three  men  in  the  apparition  of  Mamre,  (Genesis 
xviii.)  immediately  represents  one  of  them  speaking  as 
if  he  were  alone,  (v.  2,  10,  17.)  Thus  1  might  relate 
the  same  event  twice  successively  and  in  a  very  differ- 
ent manner,  without  ceasing  to  be  true :  "  I  met  three 
men,  who  showed  mo  the  direct  road.     Im"'taman, 


ERRORS.  13S 

who  put  me  in  the  right  way."  It'  then,  there  is,  in 
the  quoted  passages,  a  striking  difference,  yet  there  is 
not  even  the  appearance  of  contradiction. 

Second  exam-pie. — Matthew  (xx.  30,)  says ;  that  as 
Jesus  was  going  out  of  Jericho^  followed  by  a  great 
multitude^  two  blind  men,  sitting  by  the  way-side,  hear- 
ing that  Jesus  loas  -passing,  cried,  saying  ;  Have  mercy 
on  us  ! 

And  Mark  (x.  46,)  tells  us  ;  as  Jesus  went  out  of  Jer- 
icho ivith  his  disciples  and  a  great  number  of  people, 
blind  Bartimeus  sat  by  the  way-side,  begging.  And 
when  he  heard  that  it  was  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  he  began 
to  cry  out,  and  say,  Jesus,  have  m.ercy  on  me.  Luke, 
also,  (xviii.  35.)  speaks  of  only  one  blind  man. 

What  is  there  here,  we  still  ask,  of  contradiction  or 
inaccuracy"?  Of  these  two  blind  men  whom  Jesus,  in 
the  midst  of  so  many  other  works,  healed  at  Jericho,  one 
more  remarkable  than  the  other,  perhaps  better  known 
than  the  other,  spoke  to  Jesus  in  the  name  of  both. 
Mark  speaks  of  him  alone,  he  even  tells  us  his  name ; 
but  does  not  say  that  he  was  alone.  Matthew  then  has 
named  them  both.  The  narratives  of  the  three  evan- 
gelists are  equally  true,  without  being  exactly  alike. 
What  is  there  extraordinary  in  this  % 

But,  we  are  told,  "  there  is  a  still  greater  difficulty  in 
this  same  narrative  ;"  let  us  hear  it : 

It  is  a  third  example.  "Matthew  and  Mark  inform 
us  that  the  event  occurred  as  Jesus  was  going  out  of 
Jericho  ;  whilst  Luke  tells  us  that  it  took  place  as  Je.sus 
was  draiving  nigh  to  Jericho.  Palpable  contradiction  !" 
has  been  uttered  more  than  once. 

How  can  you  prove  that?  What  do  you  know- 
about  it  ?  must  be  the  reply.     The  details  of  this  event 


136  OBJECTIONS. 

are  unknown  to  you,  how  can  you  show  that  these 
statements  are  irreconcilable  ;  while  on  the  contrary, 
it  is  perfectly  easy  to  harmonize  them  by  a  very  simple 
supposition. 

St.  Luke,  as  he  does  so  often  in  the  whole  course  of 
his  gospel,  has  united  in  his  narrative,  two  successive 
circumstances  of  the  same  event.  Observe  that  it  is  he 
alone  of  the  three  historians,  who  mentions  the  first 
question  ot  Bavtimeus.  Haii'mg  heard  the  multitude 
who  were  passing,  he  inquired  what  it  was.  This 
question  was  proposed  by  the  blind  man  before  Jesus 
entered  the  city  of  Jericho.  Informed  then  as  to  the 
character  of  this  great  propha  whom  he  had  never 
known  until  then,  he  followed  him,  and  joined  the 
crowd,  who  during  the  repast  at  the  house  of  Zaccheus, 
were  waiting  to  meet  Jesus  as  he  should  go  out.  It  was 
then  they  told  him  that  Jesus  of  Nazareth  was  fassing. 
(these  words  are  in  St.  Luke.)  Ho  followed  him  thus 
for  some  time ;  the  other  blind  man  joined  him  ;  and 
their  healing  was  not  effected  until  the  moment  when 
Jesus,  on  his  way  to  Jerusalem,  loas  going  out  of 
Jericho,  where  he  had  stopped  only  to  visit  the  happy 
Zaccheus  at  his  own  house. 

This  simple  explanation  dissipates  all  the  pretended 
contradiction  of  these  three  texts. 

Fourth  example. — St.  Matthew  (ch.  xxvii.  5  )  says 
that  Judas  hung  himself;  Ptter,  in  the  Acts  (i.  18,) 
says  that  falliyig  headlong,  he  burst  nsunder  in  the 
mill  si,  and  all  his  bowels  gushed  out. 

Some  have  said,  that  here  is  contradiction. 

We  remember,  that  at  Geneva,  in  a  public  confer- 
ence, where  we  were  drf  nding  this  very  thesis  with 
our  dear  friend,  Professor  Monod,  then  Pastor  at  Lyons, 


ERRORS.  137 

he  cited  three  analogous  features  of  a  lamentable  death 
of  which  he  had  been  almost  the  witness.  An  unhappy- 
man  in  Lyons,  to  be  more  sure  of  his  destruction,  and 
to  give  himself  a  double  death,  placed  himself  upon 
the  window-sill  of  the  fourth  story,  and  then  shot  him- 
self in  the  mouth  with  a  pistol.  The  very  same  narra- 
tor of  this  sad  event,  might,  said  he,  have  made  three 
different  statements  ;  and  yet  all  the  three  exact.  In 
the  first,  he  might  have  described  the  entire  occurrence  ; 
in  the  second,  he  could  have  said  this  man  died  by  a 
shot ;  and  in  the  third,  he  threw  himself  down  from  the 
window  ! 

Such  was  also  the  voluntary  punishment  by  which 
the  wretched  Judas  went  to  his  own  place.  He  hung 
himself,  and  he  fell  down  headlong :  his  body  burst 
open,  and  all  his  entrails  gushed  out.  The  statement 
of  only  one  more  circumstance  of  this  frightful  death 
would  have  given  us  the  connecting  link.  It  has  not 
been  given  us  ;  but  who  would  therefore  venture  to 
maintain  that  there  is  contradiction  ? 

Fifth  example. — Here  it  appears  to  me  desirable  to 
enumerate  the  majority  of  those  cases  in  which  various  nu- 
merical calculations  may  appear  to  be  at  variance ;  as,  for 
instance,  that  of  the  talents  of  gold  brought  from  Ophirto 
king  Solomon  (1  Kings  ix.  28  ;  2  Chron.  viii.  18  ;)  that 
of  the  numbering  of  the  Israelites  in  the  time  of  David 
(2  Sam.  xxiv.  9  ;  1  Chron.  xxi.  5  ;)  that  of  the  children 
of  the  patriach  Jacob,  transported  into  Egypt  (Gen.  xlvi. 
26,27;  Deut.  X.  22 ;  Acts  vii.  14.)  <fcc.  One  single 
circumstance,  in  addition  to  these  rapid  recitals,  will  at 
once  place  them  in  accord  before  us.  King  Solomon 
might,  in  the  one  case,  have  reckoned  the  gross  amount 
of  his  revenue,  and  in  the  other  have  deducted  thirty  tal- 
12* 


1 38  OBJECTIONS. 

ents  therefrom  for  the  expenses  of  the  navy.  The  number- 
ing of  David  might  exhibit  two  results,  according  as  it 
included,  or  was  exclusive  of,  the  ordinary  military  force 
(militia)  already  numbered  throughout  the  kingdom 
(288,000  men  with  their  officers  of  every  rank,  1  Chron. 
xxvii.  I  ;  2  Sam.  xxiii.  8.)  Finally,  there  might  be 
sixty-six,  seventy,  or  seventy-five  persons  for  the  family 
of  the  Patriarch,  according  as  we  reckon,  on  the  one 
hand,  Jacob  with  Joseph,  and  his  two  sons  ;  on  the 
other,  Ifer,  Onda  and  Dinah  ;  and  to  these  latter  maybe 
added  the  wives  of  the  eleven  patriarchs  We  abstain, 
however,  from  entering  into  the  examination  of  these 
details  ;  it  is  necessary  only  to  point  them  out. 

Sixth  example. — St.  Matthew,  in  the  tvventy-seventh 
chapter  of  his  gospel  (verses  9  and  10,)  quotes,  as  from 
Jeremiah,  words  which  are  not  recorded  in  the  book  of 
that  prophet.  "  Then  (he  writes)  was  fulfilled  that 
which  was  spoken  by  Jeremy  the  frophet^  saying,  and 
they  received  the  thirty  pieces  of  silver,  the  price  of 
him  that  was  valued,  and  whom  [men)  among  the  child- 
ren of  Israel  did  value  ;"  ^c. 

This  has  been  denounced  as  "an  evident  error!" 
these  words  being  only  met  with  in  the  book  of  Zacha- 
riah(xi.  13.) 

We  will  not  reply,  with  Augustine,  that  several 
Greek  manuscripts  have  only  the  words,  "  Then  was 
fulfilled  that  which  was  spoken  by  the  prophet;"  let 
us  therefore  follow  those  only  which  do  contain  the 
name  of  Jeremiah.*  It  is  true,  that  even  in  the  present 
day,  among  the  Greek  manuscripts  of  our  public  libra- 
ries, there  are  two  which  do  not  record  the  name  of  this 

*  Possumus  ergo  dicere  liis  potiiis  codiciUiis  esse  rredendum  qui  Jere- 
misB  uomen  noa  habent. — De  Cuncensu  Evang.  lib.  vii.  c.  7. 


ERRORS.  1 39 

prophet  ; — and  that  among  the  most  ancient  versions, 
the  Syriac  and  Persic  also,  it  is  not  recorded.  This  so- 
kition,  however,  does  not  appear  to  us  in  harmony 
with  the  ordinary  rules  of  sacred  criticism,  and  Au- 
gustine himself  ingenuously  admits  that  he  is  not  satis- 
fied with  it,  because,  even  in  his  time,  the  majority  of 
Latin  and  Greek  copies  contained,  in  this  sentence,  the 
name  of  Jeremiah. 

Some  learned  men,  consequently,  presume  that  this 
name  might  easily,  by  error,  have  crept  into  the  text  ; 
and  that  the  transcribers,  having  remarked  in  the  mar- 
gin these  letters,  Zov  (which  are  used  as  an  abridge- 
ment of  the  name  of  Zechariah,)  may  inadvertently 
have  made  it  'lot;,  and  they  run  it  into  the  text,  think- 
ing they  read  the  name  of  Jeremiah.  But  neither  are 
we  satisfied  with  this  explanation,  because  it  rests  on 
only  a  hypothesis  gratuitously  opposed  to  the  manuscripts 
themselves,  and  because  it  opens  the  door  to  rash  con- 
clusions. Let  us  respect  the  integrity  of  manuscripts ! 
In  this  lies  our  security. 

I  prefer,  therefore,  the  explanation  of  Whitby,  which 
is  this  :  we  know  by  Jerome,  he  observes,  that  there  ex- 
isted in  his  day,  an  apocryphal  book  of  the  prophet  Jere- 
miah, in  which  the  words  quoted  by  St.  Matthew  are 
found,  letter  for  letter.*  It  is  also  known  that  the  se- 
cond book  of  Maccabees  (ii.  1 — 9,)  records  many  of 
the  actions  and  words  of  Jeremiah,  which  are  taken 
from  another  book,  and  not  from  his  canonical  prophe- 
cies. Why,  then,  should  not  the  words  quoted  by  the 
evangelist  really  have  been  pronounced  by  Jeremiah; 

'  Lese  nuper  m  quodam  Hebraico  volumine  quod  Nazarenae  sectae  Ile- 
braens  mihi  abttilit,  lliereniiffi  apocryphum,  in  quohac  ad  vcrbum  Scripta 
repeii.— /i/erMtt  in  Malt,  xxvii. 


140  OBJECTiOiSS. 

and  might  they  not  have  lived  in  the  memory  of  the 
church  down  to  the  time  of  Zechariah,  who  would  then 
himself  theopneustically  give  them  a  place  in  holy 
writ?  as  is  the  case  in  the  traditional  words  of  Enoch, 
quoted  in  the  epistle  of  Jude  ;*  or  the  traditional  words 
of  Jesus  Christ,  quoted  by  St.  Paul  in  the  book  of  the 
Acts.f  What  confirms  the  supposition,  is,  that  the 
words  cited  by  St.  Matthew,  are  only  in  part  found  in 
Zechariah.  Moreover,  it  is  known  that  this  prophet 
loved  to  record  the  words  of  Jeremiah.J  The  Jews 
were  accustomed  to  say  that  the  spirit  of  Jeremiah  was 
in  Zechariah,  and  that  the  two  prophets  made  one  only. 
Mede  considers  it  very  probable  that  chapters  ix.  x.  and 
xi.  of  Zechariah  were  primarily  written  by  Jeremiah  ; 
now  it  is  the  last  of  these  chapters  which  contains  the 
words  quoted  by  St.  Matthew.  This  evangelist  could, 
therefore,  have  given  them  as  from  Jeremiah,  in  the 
same  manner  as  the  apostle  Jude  quotes  as  from  Enoch 
the  words  of  his  verses  14  and  15. 

Seventh  example. — Many  difficulties  have  recently 
been  discovered,  especially  by  the  Germans,  in  recon- 
cilinor  the  four  evangelists  in  their  accounts  of  the  resur- 
rection  of  the  Lord.  In  order  to  abridge,  we  shall  pre- 
sent them  all  together,  taking  care  to  designate  them  in 
the  objection  and  in  the  reply,  by  the  same  letter  of  the 
alphabet. 

A.  "  According  to  Luke,  the  Gallilean  women  having  returned 
from  the  sepulchre,  prepared  their  spices  before  the  Sabbath  (Luke 
ixiii.  56;)  whereas,  nccording  to  Mark  (xvi.  1,  2,)  they  had  not 
prepared  them  before  Saturday  evening,  after  the  Sabbath. 

B.  According  to  Matthew,  these  women  were  only  Mary  Mag- 

*  Verses  14,  15.  t  Acts  xx.  35. 

X  See  Zech.  i.  4  :  Jer.  xviii.  11 :  Zech.  iii.  8  ;  and  Jer.  xxiii.  5. 


ERRORS,  141 

dalene  and  the  other  Mary  ;  whereas,  according  to  Mark,  (xvi.  1,) 
Salome  was  there ;  and  according  to  Luke,  (xxiv.  10,)  Joanna 
and  others. 

C.  According  to  Mark,  (xvi.  2,)  they  went  to  the  sepulchre  at 
sunrise  :  but  according  to  John  (xxi.  1,)  it  was  yet  dark. 

D.  If  (as  Matthew  has  itj  the  Jews  had  placed  a  guard  at  the 
sepulchre,  we  can  scarcely  understand  how  v»omen  could  venture 
to  visit  it  with  the  intention  of  entering  it. 

E.  Matthew  (xxviii.  5.)  tolls  us  that  the  women  saw  only  one 
angel  at  the  tomb  ;  but  Luke  says  (xxiv.  4,)  that  they  r-av/  two ! 

E.  ?ilatthew  (xxviii.  8,)  tells  us  that  the  women  having  left  the 
sepulchre  with  fear  and  great  joy,  ran  to  inform  the  disciples  of 
what  they  had  seen  ;  whilst  Mark  (xvi.  8,)  says  they  were  afraid, 
and  fled  without  speaking  to  any  person,  because  they  were  ter- 
niied. 

G.  Matthew  (xxviii.  8,)  says  the  women  told  the  disciples  what 
had  happened  ;  but  John  says  that  only  Peter  and  himself  were 
informed. 

H.  According  to  the  first  three  evangelists,  Mary  Magdalene, 
having  reached  the  sepulchre,  saw  there  angels  who  informed  her 
that  Jesus  had  risen ;  while,  according  to  John,  (xx.  2,)  she  merely 
said  to  the  disciples  that  they  had  taken  away  the  Lord,  saying  no- 
thing about  his  resurrection,  nor  even  about  the  angels,  ^^ay,  she 
says — "  and  we  know  not  where  they  have  laid  him." 

/.  Luke  (xxiv.  12,)  seems  to  imply  that  it  was  Peter  alone  who 
went  to  inform  the  others ;  whereas  John  (xx.  2,)  says  he  was 
with  Peter. 

K.  If  you  attend  only  to  the  three  first  evangehsts,  many  wo- 
men appear  to  have  witnessed  the  apparition  of  the  angels  and  the 
resurrection  of  Jesus ;  whereas  John  would  imply  that  Mary 
Magdalene  alone  was  honored  with  these  revelations. 

L.  Luke  says  (xxiv,  23,  24,)  that  Mary  and  the  women  return- 
ing from  the  sepulchre,  reported  only  the  removal  of  the  body  of 
Jesus,  and  the  apparition  of  the  angels ;  that  the}'  had  not  seen 
the  Lord  ;  whereas  Matthew  (xxviii.  9.)  says  that  Jesus  appeared 
to  them  while  they  were  yet  in  the  way. 

Here  then  are  eleven  contradictions,  not  indeed  affecting  the 
substance  of  the  sacred  narrative,  and  tvhich  need  not  disturb  our 
faith,  but  which  destroy  all  the  theory  of  a  plenary  inspiration." 


142  OBJECTIONS. 

This  objection,  we  confess,  did  seem  to  us  too  super- 
ficial and  too  frequently  answered,  to  justify  us  no- 
ticing it  in  the  first  edition  of  this  work.  But  it  has 
been  presented  anew  to  us,  and  we  deem  it  proper  to 
reply. 

The  day  of  the  resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ,  for  the 
disciples,  began  at  the  first  dawning  of  day  (John  xx.  1,) 
and  continued  until  midnight,  (Luke  xxiv.  29,  33,  36.) 
The  sepulchre  where  their  Master  had  been  laid,  was 
not  far  from  their  place  of  residence,  since  it  is  even 
brought  within  the  walls  of  the  modern  Jerusalem.  The 
disciples  and  the  women  might  then  easily  go  often  and 
in  many  ways  to  it,  during  this  incomparable  Sabbath. 
But,  as  each  one  of  the  four  evangelists  has  prescribed 
to  himself  in  this  narrative,  a  remarkable  brevity,  it  is 
very  evident  that  their  statements  concerning  the  num- 
berless incidents  of  that  day  may  easily  appear  at  first 
sight,  confused.  Each  one  must  tell  the  truth,  and  only 
the  truth  ;  but  none  of  them  is  ob]io:ed  to  tell  the  whole 
truth.  Their  very  conciseness  then  ma3r  make  their 
harmony  somewhat  obscure  at  first.  Each  one  had  his 
own  object  in  his  narration  ;  he  pursued  that,  without 
troubling  himself  to  reconcile  his  statement  with  an- 
other, whicli  he  knew  must  in  fact  correspond  with  his 
own.  What  more  can  be  required  of  them?  One 
speaks  chiefly  of  Mary  Magdalene,  because  Jesus  chose 
to  appear  first  to  her  ;  another  of  Peter,  because  Jesus 
manifested  himself  to  him,  notwithstanding  his  crime, 
and  because  he  was  called  to  one  of  the  first  ranks  in 
the  Church  of  God  ;  two  others  mention  the  remarka- 
ble interview  at  Emmaus,  on  account  of  the  instructive- 
ness  and  tenderness  of  the  scene ;  three  others,  finally, 


ERRORS.  143 

speak  of  his  appearing  to  the  eleven,  because  they  were 
to  be  the  foundations  and  pillars  of  the  Church. 

Moreover  you  can  see  in  their  histories  many  features 
which  indicate  that  they  know  much  which  they  would 
delight  to  relate,  if  they  were  not  divinely  directed  to  be 
concise.     We  will  give  some  examples. 

1.  You  hear  St.  Paul  saj^ng  (1  Cor.  xv.  5,)  that  Je- 
sus was  first  seen  of  Cephas,  and  then  of  the  twelve. — 
Yet  none  of  the  evangelists  has  mentioned  this  appear- 
ing to  Peter. — Surely  then  it  is  well  that  Luke  (xxiv. 
34,)  says  in  the  most  incidental  way,  while  describing 
a  dialogue  between  Cleopas  and  others  ;  "  the  Lord  has 
appeared  to  Simon."  But  for  this  word  the  adversaries 
of  theopneusty  would  not  have  failed  to  say,  Paul  was 
mistaken,  and  he  has  read  the  gospels  carelessly,  for 
they  have  not  said  a  word  of  this  appearing,  in  all  their 
quadruple  narrative. 

2.  Thus  Luke  also,  who  (in  the  12th  verse)  speaks 
only  of  Peter,  takes  care  however,  afterwards  (24)  to 
make  the  disciples  of  Emmaus  say ;  "  certain  of  them 
that  were  with  us,  went  to  the  sepulchre." 

3.  Thus  too  Mark,  although  he  does  not  mention  the 
manifestation  to  the  women,  nor  that  to  Peter,  yet  in- 
serts this  one  word  which  intimates  that  he  knew  of 
others  ;  '•  Jesus  appeared  first  (first !)  to  Mary  Magda- 
lene." 

4.  Finally  John  in  writing  the  supplement  to  the 
other  gospels,  while  he  speaks  of  Mary  Magdalene 
alone,  thus  indicates  by  the  use  of  a  single  pronoun, 
that  she  was  not  alone  :  "  They  have  taken  away  the 
Lord,  and  we  do  not  know  where  they  have  laid  him." 

Thus  then,  to  establish  the  charge  of  a  contradiction 
between  the  four  parts  of  this  history,  it  must  be  shewn 


144  OBJECTIONS. 

that  they  are  irreconcilable  upon  all  the  suppositions 
which  we  are  obliged  to  make  concerning  the  succes- 
sive events  of  the  day.  But  who  can  do  that?  On  the 
contrary,  it  is  perfectly  easy  to  suppose  a  natural  course 
of  events  which  would  reconcile  all  these  statements. 
So  far  indeed  is  the  problem  from  being  insoluble,  that 
several  perfectly  satisfactory  solutions  have  been  made. 
They  have  been  founded  upon  different,  but  equally  ad- 
missible suppositions  concerning  the  number  and  order 
of  visits  to  the  sepulchre  by  Mary,  the  disciples  and  the 
women.  Olshausen,  Hess  and  Griesbach  reconciled 
the  difficulties  by  admitting  that  at  day  break  Mary 
Magdalene  left  her  companions  on  the  way  to  the  tomb, 
and  arrived  there  first.  John  Le  Clerc  imagines  that 
Mary  having  come  to  the  tomb  the  second  time  with  the 
disciples,  remained  there  longer  than  they,  and  that  the 
other  women  went  twice.  Mr.  Hengstenberg  has  made 
still  more  simple  but  equally  probable  suppositions. 

To  this  it  is  replied — "  suck  hypothesis  do  not  deny 
that  there  is  a  contradiction :  they  merely  shew  that 
there  may  not  be  oner  But  what  more  can  be  required  % 
The  opponents  to  inspiration  do  nothing  more  than  this 
in  their  turn. 

Rather  then  than  repl}^  separately  to  each  one  of  the 
eleven  objections  above  stated,  we  shall  content  ourselves 
with  exhibiting  the  series  of  events  such  as  we  may  im- 
agine it  from  the  four  narrations. — It  is  almost  the  ar- 
rangement proposed  by  Le  Clerc  in  his  Evangelical 
Harmony.  Others  may  prefer  that  presented  by  Ols- 
hausen in  his  Biblical  Commentary,  or  that  of  Mr. 
Hengstenberg,  very  recently  published  in  his  Evangel 
ical  Gazette. — But  it  is  immaterial !  Our  account  wil' 
remove,  one  after  another,  the  eleven  pretended  contra- 


ERRORS.  145 

dictions.     We  employ  the  same  letter  for  the  solution  as 
for  the  objection  which  it  answers. 

A.  Jesus  had  died  on  Friday  evening  at  three  o'clock. 
The  Sabbath,  which  was  to  commence  three  hours  af- 
terwards, was  one  of  two-fold  solemnity,  being-  the 
weekly  Sabbath  and  the  Passover  Sabbath.  As  it  grew 
late  {Matt,  xxvii.  46,  57  ;  Mark  xv.  34,  42,)  Joseph  of 
Arimathea  went  to  obtain  from  Pilate  the  body  of  Je- 
sus :  he  had  procured  the  right  to  dispose  of  it ;  accom- 
panied by  Nicodemus,  who  caused  a  quintal  of  myrrh 
and  aloes  to  be  carried  to  the  sepulchre  (John  xix.  39,) 
he  had  purchased  a  winding-sheet ;  he  had  taken  down 
the  body  from  the  cross  ;  he  had  covered  it  with  spices, 
bound  it  in  bands  (John  xix.  40,)  and  wrapped  it  in  a 
linen  cloth  (Luke  xxiii.  53  ;  Mark  xv.  46  ;  Matt,  xxvii. 
59  .;)  then  at  last,  being  pressed  for  want  of  time,  he 
Hastened  to  lay  it  in  a  sepulchre  near  Golgotha.  It 
may  readily  be  conceived  then,  that  the  holy  women 
(who  had  contemplated  these  funereal  scenes  from  a  dis- 
tance, even  to  the  moment  when  they  closed  the  mouth 
of  the  tomb  with  a  great  stone.)  had  very  little  time  to 
return  home  and  prepare  the  spices  which  they  had  in 
their  possession.  The  Sabbath  was  just  commencing  : 
and  however  holy  their  occupations  seemed  to  them- 
selves, they  suspended  them  as  the  sun  had  disappeared : 
nothing  could  interrupt  for  them  the  repose  and  silence 
of  this  day.  [r'lavy.aaui' — Luke  xxiii.  56.)  But  as  soon 
as  it  was  past  (that  is  from  six  o'clock  on  Saturday  even- 
ing,) they  ran  to  purchase  spices,  to  complete  their  pious 
preparations,  which  had  been  barely  commenced.  This 
funereal  operation  required  a  considerable  quantity  of 
myrrh,  aloes  and  other  substances  ;  and  doubtless,  the 
previous  evening  they  could  not  perceive  from  such  a 
13 


146  OBJECTIONS. 

tiistance,  that  Nicodemus  had  already  «ieposited  in  the 
tomb  a  hundred  pounds  of  perfume. 

Every  thing  thus  far  then  harmonizes ;  and  it  is  by 
these  touching  details  that  Luke  and  Mark,  each  in  his 
place,  would  notice  the  humble  respect  paid  by  these 
pious  women  to  the  Sabbath  ]  the  one  (Luke  xxiii.  56,) 
in  shewing  us  with  what  submission  they  at  first  sus- 
pended even  the  most  sacred  labors  :  and  the  other 
(Mark  xvi.  1,)  with  wivdt  care  they  refrained  from  re- 
suming them  until  the  sacred  season  was  past. 

B.  In  the  meantime  they  went  out  to  go  to  the  sepul- 
chre. John  mentions  only  Magdalene,  because  Jesus 
Christ  had  chosen  her  to  be  the  first  witness  of  the  great- 
est of  miracles,  and  because  she  was  the  essential  actor 
m  his  narrative.  He  takes  care  at  the  same  time  to 
make  her  say ;  '■'  We  know  not  where  they  have  laid 
him!"  In  general,  the  evangelists  shew  very  little  so- 
licitude to  accumulate  evidence.  And,  if  the  apparition 
with  which  the  women  were  favored,  had  not  been  the 
first,  it  is  probable  that  the  sacred  historians  would  not 
have  mentioned  it.  We  may  infer  this  from  the  man- 
ner in  which  Paul  proceeds,  (1  Cor.  xv.  5,  8,)  who  men- 
tions only  the  apostles  and  not  the  women.  His  com- 
plete silence  sufficiently  explains  to  us  the  partial  silence 
<jf  the  evangelists.* 

C.  It  was  almost  night  (John  xvi.  1,)  when  the  women 
left  their  house,  with  the  spices,  to  ^o  tu  the  sepulchre 

*  It  is  a  remark  of  Hen;:steuberg.  We  recommend  his  dissertation  to 
those  who  are  desiroii.-«  of  a  more  extejided  explaiwition.  In  order  to  shew 
aprivii,  how  improbalile  rire  ihe  contradictions  attributed  to  the  evangel- 
ists, he  establishes  that  Mark  evidently  had  under  his  eyes  the  work  of 
Matthew,  and  John  that  of  l.uke.  He  says,  "an  attentive  comparison  of 
T-uke  (vii.  12)  with  .Toh;'.  (vi.  3—10)  will  leave  no  doubt  of  this.  John,  in 
order  to  make  his  gospel  more  completely  a  supplement  of  Luke's,  bor- 
rows nearly  all  his  terms." 


ERRORS.  1 47 

{a/c  to  fti'7]itnov  j)  but  the  sun  was  up  when  they  cor- 
rivcd  there  (e'-n'  to  fiirjuetor^  Mark  xvi,  2.) — The  twi- 
lights in  southern  latitudes  are  very  short. 

D.  They  enquired  on  the  wny,  how  they  could  roll 
away  the  enormous  stone  with  which  the  mouth  of  the 
sepulchre  was  closed  (Mark  xvi.  3.) — During  the  re- 
pose and  silence  of  the  Sabbath  (Luke  xxiii.  56,)  how 
could  they  have  learned  that  guards  were  placed  there  ? 
(Matthew  xxviii.  66.) 

E.  In  the  meantime  there  was  an  earthquake.  (Mat- 
thew xxviii.  2.)  An  angel,  brilliant  as  the  lightning,  and 
clothed  in  a  splendid  robejhad descended  from  heaven,  and 
rolled  away  the  stone.  The  guards,  all  terrified,  after 
becoming  like  dead  men,  had  fled  — But  what  was  the 
astonishment  of  the  women,  on  arriving,  to  find  it  open 
and  empty  !  A  young  man  only,  clothed  in  a  white 
raiment,  was  sitting  on  the  right  hand,  within  the  sep- 
ulchre. (Mark  xvi.  5  )  Tv.o  men  in  shining'garments 
then  showed  themselves,  (Luke  xxiv.  4:)  they  were  an- 
gels. (Mark  and  Matthew  mention  only  him  who  had 
rolled  away  the  stone,  and  had  fpoken  to  them.) 

F.  In  the  meantime,  the  holy  women,  going  speedih/- 
from  the  sepulchre,  fled  away  filled  with  fear  and  joy. 
(Matthevv-.  xxviii.  8:  Marie  xvi.  8.)  They  were  care- 
ful, in  returning  to  the  city,  not  to  communicate  to  any 
person,  Avhat  had  happened.  Were  they  afraid  of  the 
svmhedrim?  Or  rather  did  they  not  wish  to  confine 
the  cheering  news  to  the  circle  of  those  w^ho  loved 
him? — Notwithstanding  the  earliness  of  the  hour,  they 
might  meet  a  great  number  of  Jews  in  the  avenues  and 
squares  of  that  immense  city,  where,  during  the  festi- 
vals, there  were  more  than  three  million  souls.  The 
governor  Florus.  in  the  year  65,  counted  there,  says 


1 48  OBJECTIONS. 

Josephus,  250,000  paschal  lambs ;  which  implies  that 
there  were  at  least  2,500,000  worshippers,  without 
counting  the  sick,  the  unclean  and  the  children.* 

G.  Having  found  the  eleven  and  the  other  disciples, 
the  women  related  to  them  all  that  they  had  seen  (Mark 
xxviii.  8  ;  Luke  xxiv.  9.)  But  this  story  appeared  to 
them  only  a  dream  (Luke  xxiv.  10.)  Then  Mary 
Magdalene,  turning  more  particularly  to  Peter  and 
John,  assured  them  that  at  least,  if  their  master 
had  not  arisen  from  the  dead,  he  was  taken  away  (John 
XX.  2.) 

H.  From  the  narrative  even  of  John,  Mary  must 
necessarily  have  told  the  disciples  more  than  he  has 
directly  reported  :  for  he  adds  that  they  ran  to  the  tomb, 
and  that  as  soon  as  John  had  seen  the  arrangement 
of  the  grave  clothes,  he  believed.— But,  alas  !  this  lan- 
guage of  Mary — "they  have  taken  away  my  Lord,  and 
I  knovv'  not  where  they  have  laid  him,"  was  but  too 
natural! — The  transient  appearing  of  the. angels  had 
not  produced  a  sufficiently  deep  conviction  to  prevent 
its  being  shaken  by  the«cold  and  incredulous  reception 
of  her  story  by  the  apostles.  These  men  to  whom  she 
was  accustomed  to  look  up  for  guidance,  had  doubtless 
more  than  once  checked  her  active  imagination.  She 
saw  them  treat  her  celestial  vision  as  a  revery.  Then 
she  had  no  courage  left  to  tell  any  thing  more  than  the 
vulgar  and  material  part  of  the  transaction.  At  least, 
said  she,  the  sepulchre  is  open,  and  the  body  is  no  longer 
there  ! 

/.  In  the  mean  time,  Peter,  on  hearing  these  words, 
and  whilst  Cleopas  was  departing  for  Emmaus,  arose, 
says  Luke,  (xxiv.  12,)  ran  to  the  tomb,  but  not  alone 

•  Hist,  of  Jew.  Wars,  II.  13. 


ERRORS.  149 

(24  ;)  and  John  tells  us  that  he  was  accompanied  by 
"the  other  disciple  whom  Jesus  loved"  (John  xx.  2,  3.) 
John,  being  the  younger,  arrived  the  first :  he  did  not 
enter  ;  but,  stooping  down,  he  saw  the  linen  bandages 
lying  on  the  ground.  t*eter,  stooping  also,  saw  the 
linen  clothes  (Luke  xxiv.  12,)  and  the  napkin  with 
which  his  head  had  been  bound,  lying  by  itself.  He 
had  the  courage  to  enter,  and  was  astonished  (Luke 
xxiv.  12 :)  but  John  did  better  ;  he  entered  too,  and  be- 
lieved. Then  they  returned  home  (John  xx.  10.  Luke 
xxiv.  12.) — There  is  nothing  discordant  in  all  this. 

K.  In  the  mean  time  Mary  Magdalene,  who  had 
followed  them,  having  returned  to  the  sepulchre,  re- 
mained alone  at  the  place,  weeping,  and  distressed  that 
she  could  not  find  the  body  of  her  master.  She  stooped 
to  look  into  the  interior  of  the  sepulchre,  and  then  it  was 
that  two  angels  again  presented  themselves  to  her 
view.  They  were  seated,  one  at  the  head,  and  the 
other  at  the  foot  of  the  place  where  the  Lord  had  lain 
(John  XX.  11,  13.) — Immediately  afterwards,  Mary 
having  turn?d  her  head  around,  saw  Jesus  behind  her, 
— "  go,"  said  he  to  her,  "  to  my  brethren,  and  tell  them  : 
I  ascend  to  my  Father  and  your  Father,  my  God  and 
your  God  !" — Mary  hastened  to  announce  to  the  disci- 
ples that  she  had  seen  the  Lord,  and  that  he  had  said 
these  things  (John  xx  18:)  but  they  did  not  believe 
her  (Mark  xvi.  10.)  It  is  thus  then,  as  Mark  says  (xvi. 
9.)  that  Jesus  appeared  ^rs/  to  Mary  Magdalene. 

Every  thing  here  is  natural,  harmonious  ;  the  his- 
torians are  in  manifest  accordance. — Only  each  one  re- 
lates some  of  the  great  events  of  that  incomparable 
day,  Avithout  deeming  himself  obliged  to  relate  all. 

L.  The  two  disciples,  on  their  departure  from  Jeru- 
13* 


150  OBJECTIONS. 

salem  for  Emmaus  (Luke  xxiv.  21,  24,)  had  as  yet 
learned  only  the  first  report  of  the  women  and  the  two 
disciples  ;  the  opening  of  the  sepulchre,  the  removal  oT 
the  body,  the  appearing  of  the  angels  ;  but  they  had 
not  heard  the  last  intelligence  :  the  appearing  of  Jesus 
to  Peter  and  the  second  report  of  Mary  (John  xx.  18  ; 
Mark  xvi.  10.) — Now  see  what  ensued. — After  the  ex- 
ample of  Magdalene,  who  had  returned  a  second  tim« 
to  the  tomb  after  having  informed  the  disciples  of  her 
first  discoveries,  the  other  women  also  went  there,  while 
.she  was  returning  to  the  disciples  :  they  had  found  the 
sepulchre  empty  ;  and,  as  they  returned  to  attest  to  their 
brethren  that  the  body  of  Jesus  could  not  be  found, 
Jesus  had  condescended  to  show  himself  to  them,  living 
and  full  of  sympathy. — They  had  v/orshipped  him,  and 
he  had  said  to  them  :  "  Fear  not !  go  tell  my  brethren 
that  they  go  into  Galilee,  and  there  shall  they  see  me." 
(Matthew,  xxviii.  9,  10.) 

Such  is  then  the  harmony  of  the  sacred  narratives. 
This  solution  appears  to  us  fully  satisfactory.  Another, 
could  be  suggested,  as  we  have  said  ;  but  this  is  suffi- 
cient. We  must  confess,  Ave  cannot  comprehend  the 
difficulties  which  some  find  there,  nor  why  they  should 
lay  such  stress  upon  them. 

Anothkr  sourck  of  rash  conclusions. — Certain 
reigns,  as  that  of  Nebuchadnezzar,  ns  that  of  Jehoiakim, 
and  as  that  of  Tiberius,  have  had  two  commencements  : 
and  the  dates  which  relate  to  them  are  pronounced 
irreconcilable  ;  the  first,  before  ascending  the  throne, 
reigned  three  years  with  his  father  ;  the  second,  reigned 
un  years  with  his  father  ;  the  third  was  associated  with 
Augustus  in  the  government,  from  the  28th  of  August 


ERRORS.  151 

of  the  year  II  of  the  Christian  era,  and  yet  did  not  suc- 
ceed Augustus  until  the  19th  of  August  of  the  year  XIV.* 
Some  examples. — 2  Kings,  xxiv.  8  ;  and  2  Chron., 
XXX vi.  9.  See  also  Daniel,  i.  1  ;  ii.  1  ;  Jeremiah,  xxv.  1  : 
2  Chron.,  xxxvi.  5 — 7.     See  also  Luko  iii.  I. 


Another  source  of  rash  conclusions. — It  is  fr«- 
quently  the  case  that  the  Holy  Spirit  has  two  very  differ- 
ent designs  in  relating  the  same  fact  in  two  different 
Gospels  ;  and  yet  it  is  demanded  by  these  objectors, 
that  the  very  same  form  should  have  been  given  in 
every  case  to  the  narrative  of  the  same  event.  And 
when  the  narratives  differ  from  each  other,  they  pro- 
nounce them  inconsistent,  and,  in  fact,  contradictor}'-  to 
one  another  ! 

Example. — The  Holy  Spirit,  in  the  genealogy  of 
Jesus  Christ,  written  in  Matthew  (i.  1 — 7.)  designs  to 
shew  Ihe  Jews  that,  according  to  the  rigor  of  their  lau-, 
Jesus  Christ  is  the  Son  and  heir  of  all  the  kings  of 
Jiiduh,  by  a  legal  descent;  whilst  the  same  Holy 
Spirit,  in  the  genealogy  given  by  Luke,  (iii.  23 — 38,) 
designs  to  shov/  the  Gentiles^  that  Jesus  Christ  is  the 
Son  of  David  by  a  natural  descent.  And  because, 
with  this  twofold  d<sign,  they  give  us,  the  one  his 
genealogy  according  to  ihe  laic,  by  Solomon,  the  Son 
of  David,  and  by  Jacob,  the  father  of  Joseph.  Mary's 
husband  ;  and  the  other,  his  genealogy  by  nature, 
through  Nathan,  another  son  of  David,  and  through 
Eli,  the  father  of  Mary,  these  objectors  have,  in  their 
icrnorance.  pronounced  their  narratives  contradictory  If 

'  Velleius  Paferc.  ii.  c.  121. 

t  This  difficulty  is  scarcely  insisted  on,  any  more.  We  can  here  only 
indicate  tlie  mode  of  its  solution.  Its  exposition  requires  a  development 
loo  e.\tended  for  this  volume.     It  may  easily  be  found  elsewhere. 


152  OBJECTIONS. 

Another  source  of  rash  conclustoxs. — A  text 
hadly  translated  produces  a  sense  contrary  to  reason  or 
to  history  ;  and  immediately  the  sacred  writer  is  ac- 
cused of  the  grossest  errors  !  They  do  not  examine 
whether,  in  the  purity  of  a  better  translation,  the  diffi- 
culty would  not  vanish. 

First  example^  (it  is  likewise  one  of  those  cited  by 
Mr.  Twesten  :) — Luke,  they  tell  ns,  when  he  has  spo- 
ken (ii.  1.)  of  the  census  ordered  by  Csesar  Augustus, 
at  the  time  of  the  birth  of  Jesus  Christ,  adds  these 
words,  in  the  second  verse ;  "  this  taxing  was  first 
made,  when  Cyrenius  was  governor  of  Syria." 

'•  From  this  it  would  appear,  that  Luke  was  in  flat 
contradiction  to  contemporary  history  ;  for,  at  the  birth 
of  Jesus  Christ,  Judea  was  governed  by  Herod,  whilst 
Syria  was  governed  by  Satu minus,  or  rather,  (from  the 
fifth  year  before  the  Christian  era,)  by  Q,uintilius  "Varus, 
who  succeeded  him  ;  and  during  whose  administration 
Herod  the  Great  died.  The  Cyrenius,  (Publius  Syrius 
Q,uirinius.)  under  whom  a  second  census  was  made, 
was  not  Sent  into  the  E.ist  until  at  least  eleven  or  twelve 
years  aft^r  the  birth  of  Jesus  Christ.  The  historian 
Josephus  tells  us,*  in  express  terms,  that  this  numbering 
was  made  in  the  thirty-seventh  year  after  the  drfpat  of 
Anthony;  and  Ji-sus  Christ  was  born,  at  the  latest, 
twenty-si.x  years  after  that  great  event.  It  results  ne- 
cessarily, that  St.  Luke  has  confoimdrd  two  epochs  and 
two  numberinos  that  were  separated  by  an  interval  of 
eleven  years." 

Before  replying  to  this  str^mw  accusation,  wo  Avould 
notice  its  extreme  improltahilifv.  even  if  we  regard  St. 
Luke  as  an  uninspired  man.     Can  it  be  believed  that 

*  Jud.  Ant.  xvii.  Lj,  xviii.  3. 


ERRORS.  153 

Luke,  the  only  one  of  the  evangelists  who  was  learned, 
Luke  the  physician,  Luke  who  afterwards  speaks  of 
the  census  under  duirinius,  in  referring-  to  that  cele- 
brated revolt  under  Judas  the  Galilean,  by  which  all 
Judea  was  agitated,  and  great  numbers  perished  ;*  Luke, 
writing  for  all  nations,  a  bock  of  history,  of  twenty-four 
pages  ;  can  it  be  believed  that  Luke  was  so  for  mista- 
ken, as  to  place  in  the  days  of  Herod  the  Great,  an 
event  so  important,  and  which  had  occurred  but  thirty 
years  before!  What  should  we  say  of  a  physician  in 
our  day,  who,  even  in  a  simple  conversation,  should 
put  the  battle  of  Austerlitz  in  the  days  of  Catherine  II.. 
and  of  the  national  convention  ?  And  if  he  should  pub- 
lish an  account,  containing  such  an  anachronism, 
what  reception  would  his  work  meet  from  his  contem- 
poraries, even  the  most  illiterate  ?  It  has  thus  often 
occurred,  that  in  representing  the  sacred  writers  as  con- 
tradicting themselves,  they  are  also  represented  to  be  so 
stupid,  as  to  involve  almost  a  miracle  ! 

But  we  return  to  the  passage.  It  is  a  parenthesis. 
According  to  the  accent  which  is  placed  upon  the  first 
word,  [uvxt])  it  becomes  either  a  demonstrative  pronoun, 
or  a  pronominal  adjective ;  and  the  phrase  must  then  be 
translated  literally^  m  the  first  case,  by  this  first  enrol- 
ment ;  and  in  the  second  case,  b)''  the  very  first  enrol- 
ment. It  is  in  this  last  sense  that  this  word  has  been 
rendered  by  the  authors  of  the  new  version,  published 
some  months  since  by  a  society  of  ministers  in  Swit- 
zerland ;  and  this  we  think  to  be  the  true  rendering. 

There  is  nothing,  then,  in  St.  Luke's  narrative,  that 
is  not  entirely  natural  and  exact.  After  having  spoken, 
in  the  first  verse,  of  an  ordinance  of  Augustus,  which 

•  Acts  V.  37. 


154  OBJECTIONS. 

began  to  be  executed  under  Herod's  reign,  he  apprises 
us,  in  the  parenthesis  of  the  second  verse,  that  this 
enrolment  must  not  be  confounded  with  the  too  famous 
census  of  which  all  Judea  still  preserved  such  tragical 
recollections.  The.  very  Jiist  enrolmerU^  says  he,  was 
made  ivhile  Cyrenius  was  yet  goveraor  of  Syria. 
This  is  the  simple  and  literal  translation  of  the  Greek* 
Second  example  : — St  Paul.t  according  to  our  trans- 
lation, says  :  there  is  a  natural  body,  (in  French,  ani- 
mal body,)  and  there  is  a  spiritual  body  ;  and  this  ex- 
pression has  been  sometimes  condemned  as  contradic- 
tory. That  which  is  corporenl,  we  are  told,  cannot  be 
spiritual,  nor  that  which  is  spiiitunl,  corporeal.  '-Set 
tie  that ;  a  spiritual  body  !"  (says  the  professor  of  The- 
ology in  the  academy  of  Geneva,  in  his  treatise  upon 
the  use  of  reason  in  matters  of  fiith.)  But  all  the  diffi- 
culty in  settling  that,  lies  in  the  unfaithfulness  of  the 
translation.  In  the  language  of  the  Scriptures,  the 
word  so  inappropriately  rendered  animal  in  the  French, 
signifies  endowd  w'llh  a  soul,  mored  by  a  soul,  [yeiou- 
Fvog  elg  yu/r^v  'cC:  aav  ;)  and  the  woid  which  is  translated 


*  Olher.s,  in  tnking  Trp'^^rr)  in  the  sense  of  -rp'^r^pa,  fis  the  TTjOwroj  /loo  fjv 
of  John  llie  F]!i|iiisf,(.l()hn  i.  ].",  30.)  translate  it  thus:  "  tlii.s  eniolnieiit  was 
made  before  tliM(  Cyreniiis."  '^.c.  Tills  Irinislatioii  wonlil  still  he  leiritimate, 
althoLi'ih  perhaps  less  natural,  liecaiise  the  Greek  would,  in  this  sense,  re- 
fiemhie  less  the  ordinary  style  of  St.  I.iiUp. 

Traiislutfr's  N'i!e.—\Ve  confess  ourselves  a  little  in  the  dark  as  to  the 
author's  meaning,  while  we  (eel  confident  of  liaviiig  fairly  rendered  his 
lancruage.  To  ns  he  leive-.  the  ditll<  nlty  unsolved.  W'e  therefoie  pre- 
sume to  add  that  if  Tr/j'-ri  I'e  rendered  hffofp.  and  aniyp:i(ft~'i;  be  under- 
stood after  it,  yon  have  ac()inplete>ense.  ac -ordiuL'  too  with  facts.  Thus  ; 
"this  same  enndment  whs  heiore  the  enrolment  by  Cyrenius."  S-c.  And 
as  the  HUtliiir  sn2r'.'ests.  I.nke  knew  ilie  da'e  of  this  famous  taxinsr  under 
Cyrenius,  which  he  calls  i,i  reporiinu  Gamaliel's  speech  (.^cts5.  37.)  '■'■the 
taxing'"  We  refer  the  imjuisiiive  to  Tholuck's  Cilaubwurdigkeit  der 
Evangr.  Gesliichie,  p.  156,  edit.  2. 

t  1  Cor.  XV.  14. 


ERRORS.  155 

spirili/al.  signifies  moved  by  the  Spirit^  endowed  by  or 
Villi,  the  Holy  Spirit ;  {nvevim  e/mp,)  says  Jude,  verse 
19  ;  (  yi^Oitet'og  eig  nftvf.nx  Quionoiovv^,^  SayS  St.  Paul. 
Tlinc  is,  liirn,  nothing  contradictory  in  speaking  of  a 
gio rifled  body  endowed  with  the  HoJy  Spirit  and  moved 
by  the  Eloly  Spirit. 

Third  example: — It  has  been  alleged,  especially  in 
the  bosom  of  the  Romish  Church,  which  uses  the  Vul- 
gate, that  the  language  of  Elihu  (Job  xxxvii.  18.)  is 
tinctured  with  error.  St.  Jerome  renders  it — Tu  for- 
sita/L  cum  eo  fabricates  es  cazlos,  qui  solidissimi  quasi 
(zre  fiisi  sunt  ? — Hast  thou  indeed,  with  him,  built  the 
heavens,  which  are  very  solid,  as  if  they  loere  made  of 
molten  brass  ? 

"  This  passage,"  we  are  told,  "  which  contradicts  so  manifestly 
the  truth  of  facts,  is  that  which  the  great  Galileo  quoted,  when 
defending  before  the  court  of  Rome,  the  earth's  rotary  motion. 
And  he  was  |jcrfcctly  justifiable,  in  quoting  it ;  and  others  are  jus- 
tifiable, who  still  quote  it  for  the  purpose  of  proving  that  we  must 
not  expect  to  find  the  language  of  the  Scri[)tures  always  exempt 
from  errors,  when  they  treat  of  truths  belonging  exclusively  to  the 
order  and  movements  of  matter." 

But  here  again,  all  the  mistake  is  in  the  translation. 
It  has  ahnost  as  many  errors  as  words. 

First  fault. — It  is  not  said  in  the  Hebrew,  as  molten 
brass  ;*  but,  as  a  brazen  mirror  ;  which  shews  that 
the  comparison  refers  to  the  brilliancy,  and  in  no  wise 
to  the  solidity  of  the  heavens. 

Second  fault. — Nor  is  it  said  in  the  Hc-brew,  thau 
hast  built,  or  cmistructed  ;  but,  thoii  hast  spread  out, 
thou  hast  made  an  expanse  ;  which  shews  that  space  is 
here  referred  to,  jjnd  not  a  solid  fabric. 

'  This  objection  lies  rather  against  the  Latin,  than  against  our  Englisb 
version.— 7  Vans. 


156  OBJECTIONS. 

Third  fault. — Tn  supposing  (what  is  not  true)  that 
Elihu  here  speaks  of  the  Heavens.  This  word,  in  the 
Hebrew,  is  not  used  in  the  objective  case,  but  in  the  da- 
tive ;  although  the  prefixed  preposition  ^  is  sometimes, 
it  is  said,  taken  accusatively,  after  the  manner  of  the 
Syriac.  It  should  then  have  been  rendered,  not  che 
heavens;  hut,  for  the  heavens. 

Fourth  fault. — There  is  not  a  word  said  here  about 
the  heavens.  The  word  of  the  original  is  not  tlT)^'!!?'  but 
Q^pntU-  The  Ixx,  who  translate  the  first  of  these  words 
four  hundred  and  thiity-seven  times  by  the  heavens,  have 
translated  the  latter,  in  this  verse,  by  nahnMt.ianx.  a 
term  which  has  no  relation  to  the  heavens.,  and  the 
meaning  of  \Yhich  in  this  place  moreover,  no  one  has 
been  able  to  comprehend. 

Whatever  may  have  been  the  object  intended  by  this 
Hebrew  expression,  whose  meaning  is  unceitain,  one 
thing  at  least  is  certain  ;  it  is  that  all  idea  of  solidity  is 
perfectly  excluded  here  ;  and  that  on  the  contrary,  the 
expression  designates  that  which  is  most  attenuated  and 
subtile.  Thus  Buxtorf  has  rendered  it — res  tenuissima 
et  sublilissima  ;  Kimchi :  jmlvis  tenuissimus,  qui  ex- 
suffiatus,  oh  tenuitatem  evolat ; — most  attenuated  dust, 
which,  from  its  lightness,  is  blown  away  by  a  breath ; 
and  its  root  appears  to  signify  :  to  grind,  to  waste. 
(The  waters  wear  away  the  stones,  says  Job  xiv.  19,) — 
It  must  then  have  been  a  great  error,  to  make  of  it,  a 
vault  of  the  most  solid  brass  in  the  heavens.  This  word, 
in  fact,  is  employed  in  Isaiah,  to  designate  the  smallest 
dust  which  adheres  to  the  balance,  without  changing 
its  equilibrium  (Isaiah  xl.  15);  it  is  twice  translated  by. 
the   air    ('i'/v)    i"   '^^"^^    Ixx.*      Eight   limes   by   cloud 

*  2  Sam.  x.\ii.  V.I.    Ps.  xviii.  12. 


ERRORS.  157 

(^vscpeUfj ;  and  four  times  by  cloud  (^vecpog)*  It  is 
rendered  only  once  by  firmament^  once  by  the  heavens, 
and  once  by  the  stars  (uorou).!  probably  because  God 
has  sown  the  stars  in  space,  like  dust. 

Fifth  fault. — Finally,  the  Hebrew  has  not  the  super- 
lative very  solid,  but  the  simple  adjective  Jir7}i,  fixed. 

What  then  must  be  the  meaning  of  this  passage  ? 
We  have  already  said,  that  it  is  impossible  to  find  any 
meaning  in  the  translation  of  it  by  the  Ixx ;  as  also  no- 
thing can  authorize  that  of  St.  Jerome,  on  which  the  ob- 
jection has  been  founded.  If  then  we  were  now  per- 
mitted to  hazard  the  translation  of  a  sentence  which  has 
been  considered  very  obscure,  we  would  render  it  liter- 
ally by  these  words  ;  "  hast  thou  made  with  him  an  ex- 
panse for  the  fixed  stars,  jmre  and  brilliant  as  a  molten 
mirror  ?"t 

Fourth  Examjjle. — St.  Matthew  (iv.  5.)  immediately 
after  the  first  temptation,  saj'S  ;  that  then  the  devil  led 
Jesus  into  the  holy  city ;  .  .  .  and  when  this  second 
temptation  was  ended,  he  adds  (v.  8.)  in  commencing  the 
description  of  the  third  ;  that  the  devil  led  him  again 
upon  a  very  high  mountain,  <SfC.  ...  St.  Luke,  on  the 
contrary,  (iv.  5.)  immediately  after  the  first  temptation, 
says,  that  afterward  the  devil  led  him  upon  a  high 
mountaiu;  and  when  this  second  temptation  was  ended, 
he  adds  in  commencing  the  account  of  the  third :  he  led 
him  also  to  Jerusalem.   .   . 

■  Rosenmuller  here  renders  it  by  :  nubes,  quae,  etsi  solutse  et  laxse,  &.C., 
clouds,  which,  although  loose  and  open,  &c.    (Schol.  in  v.  t.  in  Job.) 

tJer.  li.  9. 

;  We  adopt  here  the  interpretation  of  the  Chaldee  paraphrase  which  at- 
tributes the  sense  of  mirror  in  this  phrase,  only  to  the  lust  word  p21D, 
and  which  translates  ij^-,  by  appearance;  "  whose  appearance  is  that  of  a 
molten  mirror." 

14 


158  OBJECTIONS. 

"  Here  then  are  two  evangelists  in  evident  disagree- 
ment as  to  the  order  of  the  three  temptations.  Neces- 
sarily one  of  them  is  wrong,  in  placing  the  last  before 
the  second."     Such  is  the  objection. 

You  shall  see  this  difficulty  vanish  likewise,  as  soon 
as  you  quit  the  human  versions,  and  go  to  the  original. 
We  might  cite  here  many  other  passages,  chiefly  in  the 
Epistles,  where  the  meaning  is  obscured  by  a  want  of 
sufficiently  regarding  the  conjunctions  and  adverbs,  ««/, 
de  y&Q,  ovv^  Tore,  &c. 

Every  one  knows  that  St.  Luke  in  writing  his  gospel, 
has  not  described  events  in  the  order  of  time,  but  of  na- 
ture. Each  of  these  methods  has  its  own  advantages. 
in  biographical  writing.  Among  profane  writers,  for 
example,  Nepos  has  adopted  the  one,  and  Suetonius  the 
other.  The  translators  of  Luke,  therefore,  must  pay 
special  attention  to  his  language,  and  not  lend  him  ad- 
verbs of  time,  order  and  rank,  which  it  never  entered 
his  mind  to  employ,  and  which  so  awkwardly  change 
the  meaning  of  his  discourse.  Restore  here  the  Qreek 
conjunctions,  and  you  will  quickly  perceive  the  contra- 
diction of  the  two  French  texts  disappear. 

St.  Matthew,  who  always  follows  the  chronological 
order  of  facts,  is  careful  to  employ  the  adverbs  with 
great  exactness,  in  the  progress  of  his  account  of  the 
temptation  :  Toie^ioTs^nuhv^T^is^ioTe^  then,  then,  again, 
thc7i^  then.  But  on  the  contrary,  St.  Luke,  who  has 
not  intended  to  pursue  the  same  course,  and  who  had 
no  other  design  than  to  shew  us  the  three  attacks  to 
which  the  Son  of  God  had  to  submit  his  holy  humanity  ; 
St.  Luke  scrupulously  abstains  from  employing  any  ad- 
verb of  time  or  order,  and  contents  himself  with  connect- 


ERRORS.  159 

ing  the  facts  of  his  narrative,  ten  times  by  the  copula- 
tive, AKD  [yea]  which  our  translations  have  so  badly 
rendered  by  the  adverb  then,  or  afterwards. 

The  contradiction  then  does  not  pertain  to  the  sacred 
text. 

Another  source  of  rash  conclusions. — It  has  not 
been  sufficiently  kept  in  mind  that  speeches  and  ac- 
tions were  repeated  more  than  once  during  oui'  Savior's 
ministry  ;  so  that  some  have  very  imprudently  imagined 
that  they  observed  contradictions  in  certain  statements 
of  two  evangelists,  where  they  found  only  an  imperfect 
resemblance,  and  where  at  the  same  time,  they  imagined 
themselves  to  be  reading  identical  facts. 

Examples. — We  have  in  the  twofold  miracle  of  the 
multiplication  of  the  loaves  of  bread,  a  very  striking  ex- 
ample of  the  facility  with  which  we  may  be  led  into  er- 
ror in  this  way.  Twice  Jesus  Christ,  moved  with  com- 
passion for  the  people,  nourished  a  starving  multitude 
in  the  desert.  The  circumstances  of  both  miiachs  have 
many  and  striking  points  of  resemblance.  If  it  had 
happened  that  two  of  the  evangelists  had  related  only 
the  first,  and  two  others  only  the  Sf^cond,  the  cavillers 
had  not  failed  to  cry  out  at  the  identity  of  the  facts  and 
the  contradiction  of  the  statements.  '•  What !  in  the 
one,  five  thousand  men  fed  with  five  loaves  ;  and  in  the 
othi-r,  four  thousand  nun  fed  with  seven  loaves !  In  the 
one,  twelve  baskets  full  [x6(fi)oi'c)  carried  away  ;  in 
the  other,  seven  baskets  (aTTfjjMuc !)  What  disagree- 
ment !"  Happily,  if  Luke  and  John  have  mentioned 
only  the  first,  Matthew  and  Mark  have  related  both. 
But  for  that :  what  a  noise  had  such  a  passage  made  in 
the  school  of  the  adversaries  ! 


160  OBJECTIONS. 

This  remark  may  be  applied  to  many  features  of  the 
New  Testament ;  for  example,  to  the  Lord's  Prayer, 
whicli  was  given,  at  least  twice  to  the  disciples,  during 
the  ministry  of  our  Lord.     (Matt.  vi.  9  ;  Luke  xi.  2.) 

See  also,  Mathew  xii.  39,  and  xvi.  1,4;  Luke  viii. 
21,  xi.  27,  and  Matthew  xii.  49.  Luke  ix.  1,  x.  l,and 
Matthew  x.  1. 

We  will  propose  yet  another  example. 

It  does  not  appear,  when  Ave  look  closely  at  it,  that 
the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  (Matt.  v.  vi.  vii.)  and  that 
which  St.  Luke  gives  us  in  the  latter  half  of  his  6th 
chapter,  were  pronounced  on  the  same  occasion.*  In 
fact:  I.Luke  omits  many  sentences  reported  by  Mat- 
thew,! and  he  adds  some  others  (v.  24  to  26;)  2.  Mat- 
thew notifies  us  that  the  Sermon  which  he  reports,  pre- 
ceded the  healing  of  the  leper  (viii.  3  ;)  and  Luke,  that 
his  followed  it  (v.  12  ;)  3.  Luke  places  MattheAV  among 
the  number  of  those  whom  Jesus  had  already  called  to 
the  apostleship,  and  who  descended  from  the  mountain 
with  him  before  he  delivered  his  discourse  to  them  ; 
while  Matthew  himself  teaches  us  that  the  Sermon  of 
which  he  speaks,  preceded  his  vocation  by  many  days. 
4.  Finally,  one  of  the  discourses  was  delivered  wpon  a 
mouiittiiri.^  whilst  Jesus  was  seated,  with  his  disciples 
around  him;  the  other,  on  the  contrary,  was  delivered 
in  the  plain,  and  under  other  circumstances.  We  pause 
at  this  remark  to  assure  those  who  may  have  heard  al- 
Icdged  against  the  doctrine  of  inspiration,  the  pretended 
contradiction  of  the  sentence  in  which  Matthew  (ver. 
40,)  makes  Jesus  say;  "  If  any  man  will  take  away 
thy  coat,    [xmht'u)   hi  him  have  thy  cloak   [luajiov) 

•  See  WIiitl)y  on  Matt.  v.  5. 

T  For  example,  Mall.  v.  13-39.    All  the  chapter  vi.  and  vii.  6—15. 


ERRORS.  161 

also;"  to  that  where,  according  to  Luke,  he  said; 
"Him  that  taketh  away  thy  cloak,  forbid  not,  to  take 
the  coat  also."*  No  objection,  we  obsevvp,  can  be 
made  fiom  this  diversity,  since  these  two  sentences  were 
pronounced,  on  ditfeient  days. 

Yet,  we  ought  also  to  say,  because  this  remark  is  ap- 
plicable to  many  other  objections  of  the  same  kind;  al- 
though it  may  have  been  true  that  these  two  passages 
had  been  quoted  as  the  same  fragment  of  the  same  dis- 
course, their  difference  had  not  still  caused  us  any  kind 
of  surprise.  We  believe  that  the  Holy  Spirit,  when  he 
quotes  the  Holy  Spirit,  is  not  limited  to  the  employment 
of  the  same  terms,  provided  he  preserves  the  same  mean- 
ing. A  man  of  an  exact  mind,  when  he  repeats  him- 
self or  quotes  himself,  does  not  feel  himself  in  the  least 
degree  bound  to  carry  his  imitation  to  the  very  words. 
And  we  think  that  the  Lord's  commandment  was  equally 
represented  in  each  of  these  two  sentences  of  Luke  and 
Matthew,  (refer  to  what  we  say  upon  the  same  sub- 
ject, chap.  iii.  sect.  2.) 

Ax\'0THER  SOURCE  OF  RASH  CONCLUSIONS. — Somptimes 
a  variation  critically  respectable,  which  removed  a  dif- 
ficulty, has  not  been  noticed:  and  they  have  preferred 
to  impute  the  contradiction  to  the  sacred  writer  ! 

Example. — "  According  to  tlie  three  first  evangelists  (Mark  xv. 
•25,  33,  34;  Matt,  xxvii.  45,  4G;  Luke  xxiii.  44,  bA.)  our  Savior 
was  suspended  on  the  cross  at  the  third  hour  ot'  the  da}' ;  that  is, 
at  nine  o'clock  in  the  morning;  the  sun  was  darkened  at  the  sixth 
hour ;  and  Jesus  gave  up  the  ghost  at  the  ninth  hour  ;  whereas 
if  St.  John  is  to  be  behevt-d,  (xix.  14,)  the  punisFiinejit  rould  not 
have  commenced  before  the  sixUi  Iloilt,  (at  mid-day.)  Palpable 
contradiction  !" 

*  Luke  vi.  29. 

14* 


162  OBJECTIONS. 

Before  replying  to  this  difficulty,  we  shall  present  a 
remark  quite  similar  to  that  which  we  have  already 
made  concerning  the  enrolment  under  Cyrenius.  Was 
it  likely  that  the  apostle  John  was  ignorant  of  the  length 
of  time  occupied  by  the  punishment  of  his  master;  and 
could  he  make  such  a  mistake  as  to  substitute  three 
hours  for  six ;  he  who  had  remained  before  the  cross ! 

But,  if  we  consult  the  Greek  manuscripts  of  St.  John, 
we  find  four  in  small  letters,  and  three  in  uncial  or  cap- 
ital letters  (among  others,  the  famous  manuscript  of  Be- 
za  preserved  at  Cambridge,)  which  here  read,  the  third 
hour  instead  of  the  sixth  hour.  The  numbers,  in  the 
Greek  manuscripts,  are  often  written  in  figures,  that  is, 
by  simple  Greek  letters  ;  and  the  3,  and  the  6  being  ex- 
pressed by  two  letters  easily  confounded  (the  yduinu  and 
the  enlcnjuof^)  many  ancients  have  thought  that  the 
I'ariation  was  caused  by  this.  Greisbach  who  has 
marked  this  variation  with  a  sign  of  preference,  quotes 
Severus  of  Antioch,  and  Ammonius  in  Theophylact; 
and  adds  that  the  chronicle  of  Alexandria  appealed  in 
favor  of  this  reading  to  better  copies,  and  even  to  the 
original  autograph  [iSio'/elqop)  of  the  gospel  of  St.  John. 

Another  source  of  rash  conclhsons. — The  im- 
port of  certain  features  in  a  narrative  is  not  compre- 
hended, and  the  conclusion  is  eagerly  come  to,  that  the 
author  is  in  fault. 

First  example. — Jesus,  in  St.  Matthew,  (xxiii.  35,  36,) 
denounces  the  Jews  on  account  of  their  treatment  of  his 
saints,  and  threatens  them  with  the  most  terrible  judg- 
ments of  God  ;  "  that,  (he  remarks)  upon  this  race  (or 
generation,  yii-eav)  may  come  all  the  righteous 
blood  shed  upon  the  earth,  from  the  blood  of  righteous 


ERRORS.  163 

Abel,  unto  the  blood  of  Zachariah  son  of  Barachias, 
whom  ye  slew  between  the  temple  and  the  altar." 

"  There  is  certainly  here  (we  are  told)  a  grievous  inadvertance ; 
not,  doubtless,  on  the  part  of  Jesus  Christ,  but  on  the  part  of  the 
evangelist  who  reports  his  words,  and  whose  memory  must  have 
failed.  We  know,  from  thesecond  book  ofChronicles  (xxiv.  21 .)  that 
this  Zacharias,  who  was  stoned  by  the  Jews  in  the  holy  place  (if ■^i,) 
was  the  son,  not  of  Barachias,  but  of  Jehoiada.  '  This  is,  there- 
fore, an  evident  error.  It  does  not  affect  doctrine,  and  cannot,  in 
the  slightest  degree,  be  a  ground  of  disquietude  to  our  faith ;  but 
it  suffices  to  demonstrate  that  the  tlieopneitstic  action  could  not 
have  descended,  as  has  been  pretended,  to  the  choice  of  expres- 
sions, or  into  the  indifferent  details  of  inspired  narrations.'  " 

The  answer  is  simple.  We  wish  it  were  as  easy  to 
render  it  as  short  as  it  seems  to  us  conclusive  ;  we  will 
give  it  at  once,  briefly.  There  is  no  reference  here  to 
the  Zacharias  of  whom  you  speak  ;  the  evangelist  has 
not,  therefore,  erred  in  not  naming  him,  since  he  had 
him  not  in  his  mind.  In  fact,  do  you  not  see  the  incom- 
patibility of  such  a  supposition  with  the  thought  of  Jesus 
Christ  1  What  has  he  in  view  1 — to  recall  the  longr 
catalogue  of  homicides  of  which  an  account  would  be 
exacted  from  the  race  of  the  Jews.  And  whilst  he  takes 
up  their  first  murder,  before  the  flood,  at  the  very  portals 
of  paradise,  to  make  them  responsible  for  it, — would  you 
desire  that  he  should  be  content  to  refer,  for  the  last,  to 
a  crime  committed  more  tlian  eight  centuries  before  he 
spoke  1  He  commences  at  the  son  of  Adam,  and  would 
you  imagine  that  he  could  conclude  with  the  son  of 
Jehoiada,  and  thus  hold  the  Jews  innocent  of  the  blood 
shed  during  873  years,  the  most  shameful  period  of 
their  history?  Would  it  not  have  been  more  rational 
to  commence  rather  than  to  end  with  this  Jehoiada  ? 
Were  not  the  Jews  far  more  responsible  for  their  homi- 


164  OBJECTIONS. 

cides,  committed  in  their  last  nine  centuries,  than  they 
could  be  for  blood  which  was  shed  before  the  deluge? 
Had  they  not,  for  instance,  pursued  and  killed,  with  fear- 
ful fury,  the  prophet  Urijah  240  years  after  Je- 
hoiada?  (Jer.  xxvi.  23.)  Which  of  the  prophets  (de- 
mands Stephen)  have  not  your  fathers  persecuted?  and 
they  have  slain  them  which  predicted  the  coming  of  the 
Just  One."  (Acts  vii,  52.)  There  is,  therefore,  no 
reference  to  the  son  of  Jehoiada  in  the  passage  of  St. 
Matthew. 

Our  answer  might  terminate  here ;  but  it  will  doubt- 
less be  asked,  who,  then,  was  the  Zacharias  of  whom 
Jesus  Christ  spake?  If  we  did  not  know  this,  it  would 
not  be  a  difficulty,  and  we  might  satisfy  ourselves  by 
replying : — It  was  a  righteous  man,  whom  the  Jews 
slew,  not  only  in  the  court  of  the  temple  [lov  isqov) 
as  the  son  of  Jehoiada ;  but  "  between  the  temple  [tov 
^ao'v)  and  the  altar ;"  and  this  righteous  man  was 
the  son  of  Barachias.  The  point,  nevertheless,  may  be 
carried  farther  ;  for  history  enumerates  to  us  two  or 
three  others  of  the  same  name,  sons  of  Barachias  (;9«^a- 
xiov  or  Baoonyov)  among  whom  the  opinions  of  learned 
men  are  divided. 

The  first  was  "  a  man  of  understanding  in  the  visions 
of  God,"  as  he  is  represented  in  the  second  book  of 
Chronicles,*  and  who,  it  is  believed,  is  the  person  spo- 
ken of  by  Isaiah  in  his  eighth  chapter.!  Bovvever,  he 
lived  too  short  a  time  after  the  son  of  Jehoi^.da,  for  our 
objections  against  the  one  not  to  have  equal  weight 
against  the  other. 

The  second  is  the  prophet  Zechariah,  son  of  Bere- 

•  Chap.  xxvi.  5. 

t  Hieron.  in  Isai.  viii.  2,  in  the  Septuagint.     Y.axapliv  vUv  0apaxtov. 


ERRORS.  165 

chiah,  and  grandson  of  Iddo,  (Zech.  i.  1,)  who  came 
from  Babylon  with  Zerubbabel,  325  years  after  the 
days  of  Jehoiada,  and  whose  writings  form  the  last 
book  but  one  of  the  old  Testament.  Scripture,  it  is  true, 
has  not  recorded  his  raartydom,  any  more  than  that  of 
the  other  prophets,  who  were  almost  all  persecuted  and 
put  to  death. 

The  temple  and  the  altar  had  just  been  rebuilt  by  his 
instrumentality,  as  by  those  of  the  prophet  Haggai 
(Ezra,  iv.  14,  15  ;)  and  Zacharias,  as  it  appears,  was 
killed  "between  the  temple  and  this  altar."  We  read 
in  the  Targum^  or  the  Chaldee  paraphrase  of  Jona- 
than Ben  Uziel  (who,  it  is  believed,  was  contemporary 
with  Jesus  Christ,)*  the  following  passage,  which 
proves  to  us  that  such  was  already,  previously  to  the 
time  of  our  Savior,  the  tradition  of  the  Jews  concerning 
this  prophet,  who  was  indifferently  called  the  son  of 
Iddo  and  son  of  Barachias  (Zech.  i.  1  ;  Ezra  v.  1.  vi. 
14.)  the  paraphrast  (Lam.  ii.  20.)  introduced  the 
"  House  of  Judgment,"  answering  to  that  lament  of 
Jeremiah:  "  The  priest  and  the  prophet,  have  they  not 
been  slain  in  the  temple  of  the  Lord  ?"  "  Was  it  well 
of  you  to  kill  a  prophet,  as  you  did  Zacharias,  the  son 
of  Iddo  in  the  house  of  the  sanctuary  of  the  Eternal, 
because  he  endeavoured  to  reclaim  you  from  your  evil 
ways  ?"t  It  may,  therefore,  be  seen  that  Jesus  Christ 
might  remind  the  Jews  of  the  sacrilegious  murder  of 
this  prophet,  the  son  of  Barachias,  the  son  of  Iddo 
with  which  the  prophecy  of  the  Old  Testament  was  to 
close. 

There  is,  however  another  Zacharias,  son  of  Bara- 
chias   (or  of    Baruch,  (^uoov/ov)   to  whom   the  word 

*  Prolegon.  of  Walton,  12.       t  Whitby's  Commentary  on  I^Iatt.  xxiii.  35. 


166  OBJECTIONS. 

of  our  Lord  might  be  applied  with  still  more  probability. 
Flavins  Josephus  malces  him  known  to  us  in  his  inesti- 
mable history  of  the  Jewish  wars,  which  has  already 
confirmed  so  many  other  prophecies  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment. It  is  only  three  years  before  the  last  desolation 
of  Jerusalem,  when  there  appears  a  Zacharias  son  of 
Baruch,  M'ho  is  massacred  by  Jewish  zealots  i?/,  lite 
midst  of  the  holy  place^^ey  fdooj  7u5  tV^-o^)*  and  whose 
body  was  thrown  into  the  valley  beneath  the  walls  of 
the  mount  of  the  temple.  This  was  a  righteous  man, 
whom,  according  to  Josephus,  they  hated  for  his  virtue, 
influence,  hostility  to  evil,  and  zeal  for  liberty.  Fol- 
lowing that  terrible  night, — "  which  was,"  says  Jose- 
phus, "  the  real  commencement  of  the  destruction  of 
Jerusalem,"  and  in  which  the  zealots  murdered  the  chief 
of  the  nation,  the  high  priest  Annanias,  and  soon  after, 
twelve  thousand  young  men  of  the  Israelitish  nobility, 
— these  infuriated  men  affecting  the  formalities  of  jus- 
tice, had  dragged  him  before  a  tribunal  of  seventy 
judges,  who  all,  however,  had  the  courage  to  declare  him 
innocent.  Enraged  at  hearing  his  reproaches  and 
manly  defence,  they  fell  upon  and  slew  him  in  the  midst 
of  the  lioly  flace.  This  (consider  several  commenta- 
tors,) was  the  last  of  the  righteous  whose  blood  would 
be  required  at  the  hands  of  that  homicidal  race.  Abel 
was  the  first,  Zacharias  the  last.  On  this  account, 
Jesus  Christ,  in  the  style  of  the  prophets,  employing  the 
past  for  the  future,  speaks  of  this  crime  as  already  con- 
summated :  "  You  slew  him,"  says  he  to  them,  "  between 
the  temple  and  the  altar." 

The  historian  Josephus,  it  is  true,  only  speaks  of 
Zacharias  as  a  just  man,  and  not  as  a  christian,  or  a 

•  Bell.  Judaii  Lib.  4.  C.  19. 


ERRORS.  167 

prophet ;  but  being  a  Jew,  he  could  not  use  other  lan- 
guage, and  we  see  him  elsewhere  (Antig.  lib.  xx.  c.  8.) 
only  making  mention  of  the  apostle  St.  James  (who 
nevertheless,  was  also  a  piophet,)  as  a  good  man,  whom 
the  high  priest  Annanias  caused  to  be  stoned,  to  the 
great  displeasure  of  all  right-minded  people,*  during 
the  interregnum  which  succeeded  the  sudden  death  of 
the  governor,  Festus.  Neither  has  it  appeared  to  us 
that  the  difference  in  the  terminations  of  the  names 
Barachias  and  Baruch  suffices  to  destroy  the  argument 
which  results  from  etymological  and  radical  resem- 
blance. We  see,  in  fact,  in  the  New  Testament,  how 
much  it  was  the  custom  among  the  Jews,  Hebrews,  or 
Hellenists  to  change  the  terminations  of  proper  names. 
(Silas  and  Sylvanusf,  Prisca  and  Priscilla,J  Lucas  and 
Lucius.)*^  However  this  may  be,  we  once  more  con- 
clude that  this  passage  cannot  have  reference  to  the  son 
of  Jehoiada,  and  we  leave  the  reader  to  decide  which 
of  the  two  personages  whom  we  have  indicated,  was  in 
the  mind  of  Jesus  Christ. 

Another  source  of  rash  conclusions. — The  mear^- 
ing  of  certain  features  of  a  narration  is  not  seized;  and 
thoy  rush  to  the  conclusion,  that  the  Avriter  was  mis- 
taken. 

Example. — Mark  xi.  11,  14.  Jesus  cursed  a  fig 
free  ichich  had  only  leaves,  because  it  was  not  the  sea- 
son of  figs. 

"  There  is  then  doubtless  an  error  there,  one  says  :  why  seek 
fruits  out  of  the  season  when  they  may  reasonably  be  expected  T' 

*  ETTiiiAdcrrarwi/. 

1 2  Cor.  i.  19.     1  Thess.  i.  1.     Acts  xv.  22,  34,  40;  xvi.  25 ;  xvii.  15, 

t  2  Tim.  iv.  19.     Rom  xvi.  3.    Act.s  xviii.  2,  26. 

§  Acts  xiii.  1.    Rom.  xvi.  21.    Philem.  24. 


168  OBJECTIONS. 

Yet  there  is  nothing  there  that  is  not  very  simple. 
If  it  had  been  the  season  for  gathering  figs,  this  tree 
might  have  already  been  stript  of  its  fruit,  and  its  bar- 
renness could  not  in  that  case  have  been  determined  sim- 
ply from  the  absence  of  fruit. 

But  is  a  tree,  the  objector  still  replies,  (to  say  in  pas- 
sing.) guilty  for  not  bearing  fruit?  Why  then  punish 
it  ?  We  reply  that  in  this  miracle,  which  is  a  type,  the 
tree  is  no  more  unhappy  than  it  is  guilty  ;  and  its  suf- 
fering is  no  more  real  than  its  morality.  The  one  is  as 
completely  s^^mbolical  as  the  other. 

.AnothePc  source  of  rash  conclusions. — This  rule 
has  not  been  heeded  (which  we  love  to  express  here  in 
the  very  words  of  the  great  reformer  of  Italy,  the  excel- 
lent Peter  Martyr:)*  "when  passages  are  obscure,  as 
to  their  chronology,  great  care  must  be  taken  not  to  re- 
concile them  by  imputing  faults  to  the  inspired  book. 
Wherefore,  if  sometimes  it  happens  that  we  cannot  ac- 
count for  the  .number  of  the  years,  we  must  simply 
avow  our  ignorance,  and  consider  that  the  Scriptures 
are  expressed  with  so  much  conciseness,  that  it  is  not 
possible  for  us  always  to  discover  at  Avhat  epoch  we 
must  commence  such  and  such  a  computation.  It  very 
often  happens  that  in  the  histories  of  the  kings  of  Judah 
and  Israel,  the  respective  numbers  of  their  years  can- 
not be  easily  reconciled  ;  but  these  difficulties  are  ex- 
plained and  justified  in  many  ways.  1.  The  same 
year,  commenced  by  one  of  the  two,  and  finished  by 
the  other,  is  attributed  to  both.  2.  Often  the  sons 
reigned  with  their  fathers  for  several  years  ;  which  are 
imputed  sometimes  to  one  and  sometimes  to  the  other. 

•  in  his  Commentary  on  2  Kings  xiii.  17,  and  1  King.s  xv.  I. 


ERRORS.  iby 

3.  There  were  often  interregnums  which  the  Scrip- 
tures attribute  sometimes  to  the  predecessors,  sometimes 
to  the  successors.  4.  Finnlly,  it  sometimes  happens 
that  certain  years  in  which  oppressive  and  profane 
princes  reigned,  are  regarded  as  not  having  existed,  and 
are  not  counted." 

The  grand  divisions  of  time,  in  the  history  of  God's 
people,  are  marked  with  great  precision. — From  the 
entrance  of  Abraham  into  Canaan,  to  the  entrance  of 
his  grandson  into  Egypt,  215  years  :  thence  215  years 
to  the  passage  of  the  Eed  Sea  ;  or,  430  years  in  the 
whole,  (Gal.  iii.  17,  Exod.  xii.  40;)  thence  to  the 
foundation  of  the  temple,  480  years  (1  Kings  ii.  1  ;)  and 
thence  to  the  Babylonish  captivity,  422  years. — But, 
within  these  grand  divisions  of  history,  the  precise  and 
coordinate  arrangement  of  all  the  little  intermediate 
dates,  the  reconciliation  of  the  figures  presented  to  us 
in  narratives  so  concise,  and  of  a  period  as  ancient  as 
•he  siege  of  Troy,  (that  of  the  Judges,  that  of  Kings, 
and  that  of  Chronicles,)  concerning  the  reigns  and  inter- 
regnums, first  of  judges,  then  of  kings,  especially  after 
the  subdivision  of  the  twelve  tribes  into  two  distinct 
kingdoms  ;  this  arrangement,  we  say,  presents  nume- 
rous difficulties,  for  which  we  sometimes  do  not  possess 
the  means  of  solution. 

We  think  that  the  examples  which  we  have  cited 
thus  far,  are  sufficient.  We  shall  quote  no  more.  What 
we  have  said,  may  show  the  real  value  and  weight  of 
the  objections  ;*  for  (we  repeat  it,)  we  have  taken  pains 
to  adduce  those  which  are  considered  the  most  impor- 
tant.    Warned  by  these   examples,  and  by  so  many 

'  See  for  greater  detail,  the  authors  we  have  cited,  and  especially  the 
useful  collection  of  Home.    (lutroduciioii  to  the  Study  of  the  Scriptures,) 

15 


170  OBJECTIONS. 

Others,  let  us  then  learn,  if  hereafter  any  difficuhies  of 
the  same  kind  present  themselves  to  us,  to  think  as  did 
Julius  Africanus  the  friend  of  Origen,  sixteen  hundred 
years  ago  ;  and  as  have  done  before  and  after  him,  all 
men  of  God.  "  At  all  events,  (said  he  in  reconciling 
the  two  genealogies  of  Matthew  and  Luke,)  at  all  events, 
certainly  the  gospel  is  every  where  true  !" — To  /./sVtoi 
Evuyyskiov  nufibtg  uXi/deuai* 

SECTION  VII. 

Errors  Contrary  to  the  Philosophy  of  Nature. 

'"It  will  be  admitted,"  it  has  been  sometimes  said,  "  that  the  ap- 
parent or  real  contradictions  in  the  dates,  the  quotations  and  the 
narratives  of  the  Scriptures,  may  be  susceptible  of  solution  by  the 
resources  of  a  more  or  less  labored  exegesis  ;  but  there  are  others 
which  you  cannot  reconcile :  they  are  all  those  expressions  in 
which  the  sacred  writers  are  in  manifest  opposition  to  the  laws  of 
nature  now  better  understood.  At  the  same  time  (we  may  add,) 
if  this  argument  against  the  verbal  inspiration  of  the  Scriptures, 
is  irrefutable ;  it  does  not  compromise,  in  the  least,  the  divinity  of 
thtir  doctrines,  any  more  than  the  truth  of  the  great  religious 
facts  which  they  relate  to  us.  In  inspiring  his  apostles  and  his 
propbets,  God  would  make  of  us  not  scholars,  but  saints.  We 
might  then,  without  danger,  leave  tlie  holy  Scriptures  to  speak  ig- 
norantly  of  the  phenomena  of  the  material  world  ;  their  prejudices 
on  such  subjects  are  innocent,  but  unquestionable.  Do  you  not 
often  lieur  them  speaking  as  if  the  earth  was  immovable,  and  the 
sun  in  motion  1  This  heavenly  body,  according  to  them,  rises  and 
sets :  '  its  course  is  from  one  end  of  the  heavens  unto  the  other.' 
(Ps.  xix.)  The  moon  and  stars  are  likewise  in  motion  ;  the  sun, 
by  the  command  of  Joshua,  stood  immovable  in  the  mid-heaven ; 
it  stands  still  over  Gibeon,  and  the  moon  in  Ajalon.  (Josh  x.  12.) 
'The  earth  is  founded  upon  the  seas.'  (Ps.  xxiv.  2.)  'Taken 
from  the  water,  it  exists  in  the  water.'  ("2  Pet.  iii.  5.)  '  God  has 
laid  \U  foundations  ;  it  shall  never  be  moved.'  (Ps.  civ,  5.)  Can 
you  admit  that  tliis  is  really  the  language  of  the  Creator  of  the 
heavens  and  the  earth,  speaking  to  bis  creatures  1" 
'  Eus-ebiuh  Hist.  Eclec.  lib.  1.  c.  vil. 


ERRORS.  '     171 

We  shall  reply  to  this  objection  ;  and  we  rejoice  to 
meet  it  on  our  way,  because  the  examination  of  it  must 
exhibit  the  glory  of  the  Scriptures. 

We  freely  admit,  that  if  any  physical  errors  were 
fully  proved  to  be  in  the  Scriptures,  the  Scriptures  could 
not  be  from  God.  But  we  mean  to  show  that  there  are 
none  ;  and  we  shall  dare  to  challenge  the  adversaries, 
to  produce  one  from  the  entire  Bible.  We  are  going 
still  farther  ;  and  we  shall  show,  on  the  contrary,  how 
much  latent  science  is  concealed  under  the  simplicity 
of  its  lano-ua^e. 

We  shall  commence  by  saying  something  concern- 
ing the  miracle  of  Joshua,  because  it  has  often  been  ad- 
duced for  the  purpose  of  combatting  the  plenary  inspi- 
ration, or  even  the  divine  mission  of  the  men  of  God. 
We  have  read  the  works  of  many  infidels,  who  have 
attacked  it  with  their  ordinary  pride,  and  with  that  se- 
vere irony  which  too  often  characterizes  them.  But 
it  is  easy  to  answer  them.  We  do  not  think  of  dis- 
cussing here  the  manner  in  which  the  miracle  was  per- 
formed ;  but  we  wish  to  show  by  this  example,  with 
what  levity  and  precipitancy  they  have  determined, 
that  because  they  did  not  comprehend  certain  passages, 
they  must,  of  course,  be  unreasonable. 

The  sun,  on  the  day  of  the  battle  of  Beth-horon,  stood 
still  in  the  midst  of  the  heavens,  it  is  written  in  the 
tenth  chapter  of  Joshua  ;  and,  there  never  luas  a  day 
like  it,  before  nor  since. 

In  Germany,  it  has  been  said  :  This  phrase,  taken 
in  its  natural  meaning,  appears  to  us  absurd  ;  then  it 
is  erroneous  and  totally  human.  Elsewhere  it  has 
been  said  :  It  is  absurd  ;  then  we  must  give  it  another 
meaning.      But  both   have  reasoned  from  false  pre- 


172  OBJECTIONS. 

raises.     The  fact  is  any  thing  but  absurd  :  it  is  merely 
miraculous. 

We  will  present  the  objection  in  the  words  of  a  pro- 
fessor of  theology  :* 

"  The  most  intrepid  Methodist,"  says  h'^,  "  would  be  constrained 
to  admit  that,  in  the  system  of  our  globe,  if  the  sun  had  stood  still 
for  one  single  instant,  or  if  the  movement  of  the  globe  had  been 
retarded,  the  belligerent  armies,  and  everything  on  the  face  of  the 
earth,  would  have  been  swept  away  like  the  chaflF  before  the  tem- 
pest.    It  is  an  expression  which  cannot  be  taken  literally." 

The  enemies  of  inspiration  produce  this  objection 
for  another  purpose.  The  sacred  historian,  they  say, 
did  not  know  the  laws  of  nature — he  is  then  unin- 
spired. 

And  yet,  it  is  this  very  objection  itself  which  is  an 
error.  In  fact,  if  the  miracle,  in  place  of  arresting 
suddenly,  in  an  indivisible  instant,  the  rotation  of  our 
globe,  took  only  the  short  space  of  a  few  seconds  to  ac- 
complish it  by  a  gentle  and  continuous  action,  then  you 
have  enough  in  this  simple  circumstance  to  assure  you 
that  such  a  phenomenon  could  not  have,  mechanically, 
any  other  sensible  effect  than  to  raise  from  west  to  east, 
the  waters  spread  over  the  surface  of  the  earth.  A 
child  might  tell  you,  that  a  coach  in  rapid  motion, 
rushing  against  an  impediment,  may  be  dashed  to 
pieces,  because  the  impediment  is  immoveable  ;  and  all 
the  travelers,  thrown  out  forward,  will  be  hurled  to 
the  ground.  But  let  it  be  stopped  by  a  continuous  re- 
sistance, which  is  applied  gradually,  for  three  or  four 
seconds  ;  then  the  smallest  children  seated  m  the  vehi- 
cle will  remain  unshaken  from  their  seats  ;    they  will 

*  Upon  the  use  of  reason  in  matter.s  of  faith.— Theol.  Essays  of  M.  Che- 
neviere,  Pastor  and  Professor,     tome  1,  p.  456. 


ERRORS.  173 

not  even  be  aware  of  the  impulse,  which,  three  seconds 
before,  they  were  receiving  from  the  impetuous  move- 
ment of  the  horses,  and  which,  without  this  precaution, 
must  have  been  sufficient  to  throw  them  to  a  great  dis- 
tance. 

The  rotation  of  the  earth,  is.  at  the  equator,  at  the  rate 
of  1426  feet  a  second  ;  at  Jerusalem,  1212  feet.  This 
is  the  speed  of  a  ball  at  the  moment  of  leaving  a  cannon, 
projected  by  one  fifth  its  own  weight  of  powder  :  which 
is  capable  (deducting  the  effect  of  atmospheric  resist- 
ance,) of  elevating  this  projectile  to  the  extreme  height 
of  24,000  feet;  and  yet  a  child  of  six  years,  in  two- 
thirds  of  a  minute,  could,  without  danger,  destroy  all 
this  force,  b}^  the  elastic  and  continued  action  of  its  fin- 
gers. Commit  to  its  little  hands  an  eight  pound  can- 
non-ball for  forty  seconds  :  and  during  the  same  time, 
let  another  of  the  same  weight  fall  freely  through  the 
air,  and  from  the  height  of  mount  Himalaya.  At  the 
end  of  only  forty  seconds,  the  weight,  after  having 
acted  hy  the  same  impulse  upon  the  one  and  the  other 
of  these  projectiles,  shall  merely,  in  regard  to  the  first, 
have  wearied  the  feeble  fingers  which  hold  it :  while  it 
shall  have  imparted  to  the  other  a  rapidity  of  motion, 
equal  to  that  of  the  rotation  of  the  earth  impressed  on 
the  hill  of  Beth-horon  in  the  latitude  of  Jerusalem.  The 
child  does  not  imagine  that  he  has  been  able  in  two 
.birds  of  a  minute,  to  destroy,  by  the  continued  action  of 
his  little  hand,  a  force  capable  of  projecting  a  ball  eight 
thousand  feet  higher  that  Mount  Blanc,  and  of  cutting 
lown  at  an  immense  distance,  squadrons  and  ramparts 
in  the  day  of  battle!* 

•  Translator's  Note.— It  has  been  suggested  that  the  argument  is  not 
learly  stated.     To  us  it  is  as  clear  as  it  is  beautiful.    Although  we  must 

15* 


174  OBJECTIOKS. 

Thus  then,  if  God  should  have  employed  no  more 
than  forty  seconds,  in  the  days  of  Joshua,  to  arrest  by 
n  supple  and  successive  resistance,  the  movement  of  our 
g-lobe,  the  projecting-  impulse  from  west  to  east,  which 
.  a  mass  of  iron  of  eight  pounds  would  have  felt  in  the 
plain  of  Beth-horon,  would  have  been  no  stronger  than 
the  pressure  felt  to-day  by  the  hand  upon  which  you 
lay  such  a  v/eight.  And  if  the  mass  instead  of  having 
the  form  of  a  bullet,  had  had  that  of  a  quoit  or  of  a  cube, 
there  would  not  have  been  enough  of  that  impulse  to 
make  it  overcome  the  resistance  of  friction,  and  change 
its  place  upon  the  surface  of  the  ground. 

It  will  perhaps  be  objected,  that  the  rotation  of  the 
globe  at  Beth-horon  was  twenty-seven  times  more  rapid 
than  the  movement  of  a  steam-carriage  upon  a  rail-road. 
True;  but  since  the  retarding  force  necessary  to  exhaust 
a  given  impulse,  is  in  inverse  proportion  to  the  time 
employed,  suppose  the  miracle  accomplished  in  eighteen 
minutes  ;  take  eighteen  minutes  instead  of  forty  seconds, 

confess  ourselves  better  satisfied  with  the  simple  solution  furnished  by  the 
fact  that  it  was  a  miracle  ;  and  of  course  he  who  had  power  to  stay  the 
earth,  could  counteract  other  laws  of  matter,  and  prevent  the  consequen- 
ces suggested.  But  if  our  author  needs  elucidation,  we  would  add,  that 
he  is  replying  to  the  objection  that  if  the  globe  were  stopped,  it  would 
hurl  every  thing  from  its  surface.  He  replies  that  this  would  not  be  the 
result,  provided,  without  an  addition  to  the  miracle,  the  arresting  force 
were  applied  gradually.  And  then  to  show  how  important  an  element  in 
physical  force,  time  is,  he  says  that  a  child  can  hold  in  his  hand  a  cannon- 
ball  for  forty  seconds,  and  thus  resist  the  same  force  of  gravitation  whicli 
would  project  the  same  ball  through  '24,000  perjjendicular  feet.  Which  he 
thus  demonstrates  ;  in  40  seconds  gravitation  acting  on  a  cannon-ball  pro- 
jected by  a  certain  force,  would  comi)letely  overcome  that  force  Hut 
this  same  amount  of  gravitation  (if  not  more,  as  it  is  nearer  the  earth's 
surface  tliHn  the  Hying  ball,)  is  completely  overcome  by  the  child's  hand 
in  holding  the  ball.  Now  a  falling  body  would  acquire  in  24  (he  says  40) 
seconds,llie  velocity  of  the  earth  at  Beth-'.:oron.  Ifaconstant  force,  there- 
fore, equivalent  to  that  of  gravitation  were  ni>plled  by  the  hand  of  omni- 
potence for  24  seconds,  it  might  reduce  the  earth  to  a  stale  of  perfect  rest, 
without  doing  the  least  violence  to  any  object  upon  its  surface. 


ERRORS.  175 

to  Stop  entirely  the  movement  of  the  terrestrial  globe  at 
the  command  of  Joshua,  and  then  "  the  contending  ar- 
mies instead  of  being  swept  away  as  by  the  tempest," 
would  no  more  have  felt  what  was  passing,  than  do,  at 
each  station,  the  thousands  of  travelers  who  are  stopped 
upon  a  rail-road  ! 

Other  difficulties,  of  the  same  character,  have  been 
advanced  respecting  this  miracle  of  Joshua. 

"  If  the  earth,"  it  has  been  reraarketl,  ''  had  suspended  its  move- 
ment during  ten  hours,  the  power  of  the  sun's  attraction,  acting 
unconnectedly  upon  it,  would  at  once  have  caused  it  to  fall  nine 
hundred  leagues  in  the  direction  of  its  powerful  focus,  and  the 
annual  conditions  of  our  orbit  would  thus  have  been  sensibly  de- 
ranged." 

This  objection  has  no  more  reality  than  the  preceding 
one.  The  miracle,  in  fact,  does  not  involve  the  slight- 
est disturbance  of  the  earth's  progressive  motion,  but 
merely  of  its  rotation  :  for,  according  to  the  laws  of  ce- 
lestial mechanics,  the  rotation  of  a  planet  on  its  axis  is 
entirely  independent  of  the  movement  which  is  imposed 
upon  its  centre  of  gravity,  and  which  impels  it  in  its 
elliptical  course.  Experience  had  attested  this,  pre- 
viously to  its  demonstration  by  astronomical  science. 
It  had  long  been  observed,  that  the  velocity  of  the  sun 
(or  rather  of  the  earth)  in  its  orbit,  unceasingly  varied 
from  one  end  of  the  year  to  the  other,  and  notwithstand- 
ing this,  there  exists  not  in  nature  a  movement  more 
uniform  than  that  which,  to  our  eyes,  causes  the  whole 
celestial  sphere  to  revolve.  Observations  upon  the  mo- 
tion of  the  moon  have  proved  that  for  upwards  of  two 
thousand  years,  the  sidereal  day  has  not  even  varied  the 
hundredth  part  of  a  minute. 

Let  us  suppose  a  double  concussion  communicated  to 


176  OBJECTIONS. 

the  earth,  above  and  below  its  centre  in  two  opposite 
and  parallel  directions  ;  and  it  will  be  explained  how 
rotation  on  its  axis  may  have  been  suspended,  without 
its  progressive  motion  being  at  all  aflected.  But  I 
pause.  It  would  be  rash,  I  will  say,  it  would  be  puerile, 
to  pretend  to  enter  into  the  details  of  the  prodigy,  in 
order  to  account  for  the  causes  of  it ;  and  I  have  been 
desirous  only  to  exhibit  the  vanity  of  the  objections. 
The  truth,  which  they  do  not  tell,  is,  that  they  find  the 
miracle  too  great  for  its  object.  But  for  men  who  be- 
lieve in  the  great  miracle  of  redemption  by  the  Son  of 
God,  nothing  is  too  great ;  all  proceeds  in  just  propor- 
tions in  the  divine  revelations.  Moreover,  and  I  hasten 
to  avow  it,  it  would  not  even  be  necessary  for  me  to  ac- 
count for  this  prodigy,  by  assuming  so  absolute  an  act 
of  almighty  power,  as  the  suspension  of  the  revolution 
of  our  globe.  To  effect  it,  God  may  have  employed 
only  one  of  those  numerous  causes  which  divert  light 
from  its  course,  and  produce  the  countless  illusions  of 
optical  science  ;  some  of  those  refractions,  for  instance, 
which  daily  give  new  aspects,  in  various  ways,  to  all 
the  stars  of  the  celestial  hemisphere.  Is  it  not  known, 
that  in  the  polar  regions,  the  power  of  horizontal  re- 
fraction causes  the  sun  to  appear  to  the  inhabitants  of 
those  bleak  countries,  ten  days  before  it  is  really  above 
'heir  horizon  ?  Such  might  have  been  the  cause  of  the 
jniracle  at  Beth-horon.  We  decide  nothing, — we  do 
not  even  suppose  any  thing.  We  would  only  say,  that 
the  miracle  was  duly  consummated,  (whalf-vfr  wer^'  the 
means  by  which  it  was  produced,)  provided  to  the  eyes 
of  the  inhabitants  of  Palestine,  the  sun  stood  slill  in 
Gibeofi^  and  the  moon  in  the  valley  of  Ajalon. 

Yet  the  Scriptures  are  reproached  for  having  spoken 


ERPwORS.  177 

upon  the  daily  phenomena  of  nature,  in  a  way  that  ap- 
pears to  show  ignorance,  and  which  is  incompatible  with 
a  plenary  inspiration.  According  to  the  sacred  writers, 
the  sun  rises,  the  sun  sets,  the  sun  stops,  the  earth  re- 
mains firm !  It  has  been  demanded  that  the  Creator, 
in  speaking-  to  us  through  a  book  which  he  has  in- 
spired, should  have  showed  us  more  clearly,  that  the 
Spirit  who  directed  the  sacred  historians,  knew  before 
we  did,  the  rotary  motion  of  our  globe,  its  periodical 
revolution,  and  the  relative  immobility  of  the  Sun. 

Let  us  still  farther  examine  this  reproach. 

We  will  first  inquire  of  those  who  make  it,  if  they 
would  have  had  the  Bible  speak  like  Isaac  Newton. 
Would  they  forget,  that  if  God  had  spoken  about 
scenes  of  nature, — I  do  not  say  only,  as  he  sees  it,  but 
as  the  scientific  men  of  future  ages  will  see  it, — then 
the  great  Newton  himself  had  understood  nothing  of  it? 
Besides,  even  the  most  advanced  language  of  science  is 
not  yet,  and  never  will  be,  after  all,  any  thing  more 
than  the  language  of  appearances.  The  visible  world 
is,  much  more  than  you  imagine,  a  figure  which  passes 
away,  a  scene  of  illusions  and  of  phantoms.  That 
which  you  there  call  reality,  is  still  in  itself  only  an  ap- 
pearance relatively  to  a  more  elevated  reality,  and  a 
more  profound  analysis.  In  our  ignorant  mouth,  the 
word  reality  has  nothing  absolute  ;  it  is  a  term  totally 
relative,  and  is  employed  in  proportion  as  we  think  we 
have  reached  a  new  round  on. the  ladder  by  which  wc 
come  up  from  the  depths  of  our  ignorance.  The  hu- 
man eye  sees  objects  only  under  two  dimensions,  and 
projects  them  all  upon  the  same  canvass,  until  the  touch 
and  some  experience  have  rendered  to  them  the  reality 
of  drpth,  or  a  third  dimension.     Colours  are  accidents, 


178  OBJECTIONS. 

and  belong  only  by  reflection  and  by  illusion  to  the  ob- 
jects which  present  them  to  you.  The  very  irapeii^v 
trability  of  bodies,  their  solidity,  their  extension,  are 
after  all,  only  an  appearance,  and  present  themselves  to 
us  as  a  reality  only  in  expectation  of  a  profounder  sci- 
ence, which  shall  substitute  another  for  it.  Who  may 
tell  us  where  this  analysis  is  to  stop ;  and  what  wouKd 
be  our  language  concerning  beings  which  are  the  most 
familiar  to  us,  if  we  were  only  endowed  with  one  more 
sense  ;  with  antennse,  for  example,  like  the  ant  and  the 
bee  ?  The  expression  of  appearances,  provided  it  be 
exact,  is  then  among  men,  a  language  philosophically 
correct ;  and  is  that  which  the  Scriptures  ought  to 
adopt.  Would  you  have  the  Bible  speak  to  us  of  tlie 
scenes  of  nature  otherwise  than  as  we  speak  of  them  to 
one  another  in  our  social  or  domestic  intercourse  ;  other- 
wise than  even  the  learned  themselves  speak  of  them  to 
one  another  ?  When  Sir  John  Herschell  asks  his  ser- 
vants to  send  some  one  to  wake  him  exactly  at  mid- 
night, for  the  observation  of  the  passage  of  some  star 
over  his  meridian  lens  :  does  he  think  himself  obliged 
to  speak  to  them  of  the  earth,  of  her  rotation,  and  of 
:he  moment  when  she  shall  have  brought  their  nadir 
into  the  plane  of  her  orbit?  I  think  not.  And  if  you 
should  ever  hear  him  converse,  in  the  Observatory  of 
Greenwich,  with  the  learned  Ayric,  you  would  see  tha^ 
even  in  this  sanctuary  of  science,  the  habitual  langua 
of  these  astronomers  is  still  just  like  that  of  the  Scri 
tures.  For  them,  the  stars  rise,  the  equinoxes  recede 
the  planets  advance  and  are  accelerated,  stop  and  retro- 
grade. Would  you  then  have  Moses  speak  to  all  the 
generations  of  men,  in  a  language  more  scientific  than 
that  of  La  Place,  of  Arago  and  of  Newton  ? 


ERRORS.  179 

But  Still  farther  ;  we  adduce  two  general  facts  which 
shine  with  a  great  light,  when  they  are  studied ;  and 
which  immediately  shew  us  in  the  Scriptures,  the  pen 
()f  the  Almighty  God.  Here,  as  every  where  else,  the 
objections  when  contemplated  more  closely,  return  back 
on  the  objector,  are  recanted  triumphantly,  and  become 
arguments. 

These  two  facts  are  analogous  to  that  which  you 
may  observe  in  the  words  of  a  learned  astronomer, 
conversing  with  his  young  children,  and  showing  them 
with  his  finger,  the  earth  and  the  heavens.  If  you  fol- 
lowed him  in  these  interviews,  when  his  tenderness 
stooping  to  their  level,  presents  to  their  new-born  intel- 
ligence, images  and  v/ords  which  it  can  comprehend, 
you  would  then  quickly  remark  his  respect  for  truth, 
by  a  two-fold  sign.  First,  he  would  never  tell  them 
any  thing  that  was  not  true  ;  and  secondly,  there  would 
be  in  his  words  many  indications  that  he  knows  more 
than  he  sees  fit  to  communicate  to  them.  He  doubtless 
would  not  pretend  to  teach  them  science  :  but  on  the 
one  hand,  nothing  in  his  discourse  would  contradict  its 
principles  ;  and  on  the  other,  many  of  his  words  would 
already  indicate,  that  although  silent  about  these  prin- 
ciples, still  he  comprehended  them.  Afterv.-ard,  when 
his  children,  having  become  men,  shall  review  his 
;vords  ;  not  only  will  they  find  them  exempt  from  all 
rror,  but  they  will  also  recognize  that  they  were  skil- 
■TiUy  chosen,  as  being  already  in  preestablished  harmo- 
ny with  science,  and  as  presenting  it  to  them  in  its 
germ,  although  they  could  not  comprehend  it.  In  pro- 
portion as  their  own  knowledge  shall  increase,  they 
will  see  with  admiration,  under  the  reserve  and  the  sim- 
plicity of  his  language,  concealed  wisdom,  learned  ex- 


180  OBJECTIONS. 

actness,  turns  of  phraseology,  and  forms  of  expression, 
which  were  in  harmony  with  facts,  then  unknown  to 
them,  but  long  known  by  him. 

Such  is  the  double  observation  that  every  attentive 
reader  may  make  upon  the  language  of  the  Scrip- 
tures. They  speak  poetically,  but  precisely,  the  true 
language  of  appearances.  We  there  hear  a  father  who 
condescends  to  speak  to  the  smallest  of  his  children,  but 
in  such  a  manner  that  the  elder  can  never  discover  a 
single  word  of  his  conversation  contrary  to  the  true  posi- 
tion o-fthe  things  which  he  has  made,  and  in  such  a  man- 
ner too,  that  often  he  drops  without  affectation,  words 
enough  to  show  them  that  all  that  which  they  have 
learned  of  his  works  for  four  thousand  years,  he  knew 
before  them,  and  better  than  they  now  do.  It  is  thus, 
that  in  the  Bible,  eternal  wisdom  addresses  its  children. 
In  proportion  as  they  grow,  they  see  the  Scriptures 
made  for  their  riper  age,  adapted  to  their  developments, 
appearing  to  grovv  with  them,  and  always  presenting  to 
them  the  two  facts  which  we  have  noticed ;  on  the  one 
hand,  absence  of  all  error  ;  on  the  other,  indirect  but  in- 
contestable indications  of  a  science  which  preceded  all 
that  of  man. 

First  fuct.  There  is  no  physical  error  in  the  word 
of  God.  If  there  were,  we  have  said,  this  book  could 
not  be  from  God.  God  is  not  a  man  that  he  should  lie, 
nor  the  son  of  man  that  he  should  err.  In  order  to  be 
understood  by  us,  he  must,  unquestionably,  stoop  to  our 
feebleness  ;  yet  to  stoop  to  it,  is  not  to  partake  of  it :  and 
his  language  will  always  attest  his  condescension,  never 
his  ignorance. 

This  remark  is  more  important  than  it  at  first  ap- 


ERRORS.  181 

pears  to  be.  It  becomes  brilliant  when  surveyed  more 
closely. 

Examine  all  the  false  theologies  of  the  ancients  and 
moderns  ;  read,  in  Homer  or  Hesiod,  the  religious  codes 
of  the  Greeks  ;  study  those  of  the  Budhists,  those  of  the 
Brahmins,  those  of  the  Mohammedans  :  you  will  find 
in  them  not  only  systems  revolting  in  their  views  of  the 
Deity,  but  you  will  there  meet  the  grossest  errors  con- 
cerning the  material  world  ;  their  theology  will  doubt- 
less be  revoking  to  you  ;  but  their  natural  philosophy 
too  and  their  astronomy,  always  bound  to  their  religion, 
will  present  the  most  absurd  notions. 

Read  in  the  Chon-King  and  the  Y-King  of  the  Chi- 
nese, their  fantastic  theories  about  the  five  elements 
(wood,  fire,  earth,  metal,  and  water,)  and  of  their  power- 
ful influences  upon  affairs  both  human  and  divine. 

Read  in  the  Shaster,  in  the  Pouran,  in  the  four  books 
of  the  Vedham,  or  law  of  the  Hindoos,  their  shocking 
cosmogony. — the  moon,  they  tell  us  is  50,000  leagues 
higher  than  the  sun  ;  it  shines  by  its  own  light ;  it  ani- 
mates our  body.  The  night  is  formed  by  the  descent 
of  the  sun  behind  the  Someyra  mountains,  situated  in  the 
middle  of  the  globe,  and  many  thousand  leagues  high. 
Our  earth  is  flat  and  triangular,  composed  of  seven  sto- 
ries, each  of  which  has  its  own  degree  of  beauty,  its  in- 
habitants and  its  sea.  The  first  story  is  made  of  honey, 
the  second  is  of  sugar,  the  third  of  butter,  the  fourth  of 
wine ;  and  finally  all  the  mass  is  carried  on  the  heads 
of  innumerable  elephants  which,  in  shaking  themselves, 
cause  the  earthquakes.  In  a  word,  they  have  placed 
the  whole  history  of  their  gods  in  the  most  fantastical, 
and  yet  the  most  indissoluble  relations  to  the  physical 
16 


1 82  OBJECTIONS. 

world,  and  to  all  the  phenomena  of  the  universe.  The 
missionaries  to  India  too,  have  often  declared  that  a  teles- 
cope, silently  placed  in  the  midst  of  the  holy  Benares  or 
the  ancient  Ava,  would  be  a  battery  powerful  as  thunder, 
,to  overthrow  all  the  systems  of  Bramah  and  ol  Budh. 

Read  again  the  philosophers  of  Greek  and  Roman 
antiquity;  Aristotle.  Seneca,  Pliny,  Plutarch,  Cicero. 
How  many  sentences  do  you  find,  of  which  one  alone 
would  suffice  to  compromise  all  our  doctrine  of  inspira- 
tion, if  it  should  be  found  in  any  book  of  the  Bible  ? 
Read  the  Koran  of  Mohammed,  representino-  moun- 
tains as  being  made,  to  hinder  the  earth  from  beino- 
moved,  and  representing  it  as  held  by  anchors  and 
cords.  What  do  I  say  ?  Read  even  the  cosmogoivy 
of  Buffon,  or  some  of  the  ironies  of  Voltaire  upon 
the  doctrine  of  a  deluge,  or  upon  the  fossil  animals  of  a 
primitive  world.  We  will  go  still  farther.  Read 
again,  we  say,  not  the  absurd  reasonings  of  the  Pagans, 
of  Lucretius,  of  Pliny,  or  of  Plutarch,  against  the  theory 
of  antipodes,  but  even  the  fathers  of  the  Christian  church. 
Hear  the  theological  indignation  of  the  admirable  Au- 
gustine, who  said  that  it  was  opposed  to  the  Scriptures : 
and  the  scientific  eloquence  of  LuctantiuSj  who  believes 
it  to  be  contrary  to  good  sense.  '•  Num  aliquid  loquun- 
iur  /"  exclaims  he ;  is  any  one  so  simple  as  to  believe 
that  there  are  men  with  their  feet  above  their  heads, 
trees  having  fruits  hanging  upward,  rain,  snow,  and 
hail  falling  upward  !  "  To  answer  you,"  he  says, 
"they  pretend  that  the  earth  is  a  globe  ?"  "  Quid  dicam 
de  Us  nescio^  qui^  cum  sequel  aberraverint^  constanter  in 
sttiUilid  perseverant,  et  vanis  vana  defendunt  I  One 
knows  not  what  to  say  of  such  men,  who  onc€  in  an 


ERRORS.  183 

error,  engulf  themselves  in  their  folly,  and  maintain  ab- 
surdity by  absurdity  !"* 

Hear  too  Boniface  the  legate,  representing  Virgilius 
to  tiie  Pope  as  a  heretic,  for  his  views  on  this  subject ; 
hear  Pope  Zachary  treating  this  unfortunate  bishop  as 
hnmo  malignus, — a  malignant  man  :  "  If  it  be  proved," 
writes  he,  "  that  Virgilius  maintains,  that  there  are  other 
men  under  this  earth  :  assemble  a  council  condemn  him, 
drive  him  from  the  church,  and  depose  him  from  the 
priesthood!"  Still  later,  hear  the  higher  clergy  of 
Spain,  and  especially  the  imposing  council  of  Salaman- 
ca, indignant  at  the  geographical  system  by  which 
Christopher  Columbus  was  seeking  a  world.  Hear,  at 
the  epoch  of  Newton's  birth,  the  great  Galileo,  "  who 
mounted,"  says  Kepler,  "  upon  the  highest  walls  of  the 
universe,"  and  who  vindicated  by  his  genius  as  well  as 
by  his  telescope,  the  unknown  and  condemned  system 
of  Copernicus  ;  see  him,  groaning,  at  the  age  of  eighty 
years,  in  the  prisons  of  Rome,  for  having  discovered  the 
m.ovement  of  the  earth,  after  having  been  compelled  ten 
years  previously,  (the  SSth  of  June,  1633,)  to  pronounce 
these  words  before  their  highnesses  in  the  palace  of  the 
holy  office :  "  I,  Galileo,  in  the  seventieth  year  of  my 
age,  on  bended  knees  before  your  eminences,  having  be- 
fore my  eyes,  and  touching  with  my  own  hands  the 
holy  Scriptures,  I  abjure,  I  curse,  and  I  detest  the  error 
of  the  earth's  movement" 

What  should  we  not  have  been  justified  in  saying  of 
the  Scriptures,  if  they  had  spoken  of  the  phenomena  of 
nature  as  all  the  ancient  sages  have  spoken  ;  if  they  had 
referred  every  thing  to  four  elements,  as  was  done  for  so 
long  a  time ;  if  they  had  called  the  stars  crystal,  as 

•  Of  false  wisdom,  liv.  iii.  chap.  24. 


184  OBJECTIONS. 

Philolaus  of  Crotona  ;  and  if,  as  Empedocles,  they  nad 
enlightened  the  two  hemispheres  of  our  globe  with  two 
suns  ;  if  they  had  said,  as  Leucippus,  that  the  fixed  stars, 
heated  by  the  quickness  of  their  diurnal  motion  around 
the  earth,  enkindled  the  sun  with  their  fires ;  if  they 
had  formed  the  heavens  and  the  earth,  as  Diodorus  Si- 
culus  and  all  the  Egyptian  sages,  by  the  motion  of  air 
and  the  ascension  of  fire  ;  or  if  they  had  said,  as  Philo- 
laus, that  the  sun  has  only  a  borrowed  light,  and  that 
it  is  only  a  mirror  which  reflects  back  on  us  the 
light  of  the  celestial  spheres  ;  if  they  had  made  it,  as 
Anaxagoras,  a  mass  of  iron  larger  than  Peloponnesus, 
and  the  earth  a  mountain,  whose  roots  go  infinitely  deep  ; 
if  they  had  spoken  of  the  heavens  as  a  solid  sphere  to 
which  the  fixed  stars  are  attached,  as  have  done,  with 
Aristotle,  almost  all  the  ancients  ;  if  they  had  called  the 
celestial  v^ault  a  firmamentuvi  or  a  axeqifa/jta^  as  their 
interpreters,  both  Latin,  Greek  and  English  have  done ; 
if  they  had  spoken,  as  has  been  until  recently  done 
among  a  Christian  people,  of  the  influence  of  the  move- 
ments of  the  heavens  upon  the  elements  of  this  lower  world, 
upon  the  characters  of  men  and  upon  the  cause  of  human 
affairs?  Such  is  the  natural  propensity  of  all  people  to 
this  superstition,  that,  in  spite  of  their  religion,  the  an- 
cient Jews,  and  the  Christians  themselves,  have  alike  fall- 
en into  it.  The  modern  Greeks,  says  D' Alembert,*  have 
carried  it  to  excess  ;  scarcely  is  there  found  one  of  their 
authors,  who.  on  every  occasion,  docs  not  spoak  of  pre- 
dictions by  the  stars,  of  horoscopes,  of  talismans  ;  so  that 
there  was  scarcely  a  house  in  Constantinople  and  in  all 
Greece,  which  was  not  built  according  to  rules  of  apo- 
ielesmatic  astrology.     The  French  historians  observe, 

*  Encycl.  ou  Diet.  rais.  des  Sciences,  etc.  tome  1,  p.  663,  (Luca,  1758.) 


ERRORS.  185 

that  astrology  was  so  in  vogue  under  Catharine  de  Me- 
dici, that  nothing  important  could  be  undertaken  without 
consulting  the  stars  ;  and  under  Henry  III.,  and  even 
Henry  IV.,  in  the  conversations  of  the  court  of  France, 
inquiry  was  made  of  nothing  but  the  predictions  of  as- 
trologers. We  have  seen,  toward  the  close  of  the  last 
century,  says  Ph.  Giulani,*  an  Italian  send  to  Pope  In- 
nocent XI.,  a  prediction  in  the  form  of  a  horoscope,  con- 
cerning Vienna,  then  beseiged  by  the  Turks,  and  which 
was  very  well  received.  And  in  our  days,  the  count 
Boulainvilliers  has  written  quite  seriously  on  this  subject. 
But  now,  open  the  Bible;  study  its  fifty  sacred  au- 
thors, from  that  admirable  Moses,  who  held  the  pen  in 
the  desert,  four  hundred  years  before  the  Trojan  war, 
even  to  that  fisherman,  the  son  of  Zebedee,  who  wrote 
fifteen  hundred  years  afterwards,  in  Ephesus  and  Pat- 
n:ios,  under  the  reign  of  Domitian  ;  open  the  Bible,  and 
search  if  you  can  there  find  any  thing  like  this. — No. — 
None  of  these  mistakes  which  the  science  of  every  age 
discovers  in  the  books  of  the  preceding  ages  ;  none  of 
those  absurdities  especially,  which  modern  astronomy 
discovers  in  such  great  numbers  in  the  writings  of  the 
ancients,  in  their  sacred  codes,  in  their  philosophies, 
and  in  the  most  admirable  pages  of  even  the  Christian 
fathers,  none  of  those  errors  can  be  found  in  any  one  of 
our  sacred  books  ;  nothing  there  will  ever  contradict 
that  which,  after  so  many  ages,  the  investigations  of  the 
scientific  world  have  revealed  to  us  as  sure,  concerning 
the  state  of  our  globe  and  of  the  heavens.  Go  carefully 
through  the  Scriptures,  from  one  end  to  the  other,  seek- 
ing for  such  spots  ;  and  whilst  you  give  yourself  up  to 
this  examination,  remember  that  it  is  a  book  which 

t  Encyc.  ou  Diet.  rais.  des  Sciences,  &c.  tome  1,  p.  6C4. 

16* 


186 


OBJECTIONS. 


speaks  of  everything,  which  describes  nature,  which 
recounts  its  grandeurs,  which  narrates  its  creation,  which 
tells  us  of  the  formation  of  the  heavens,  the  light,  the 
waters,  the  atmosphere,  the  mountains,  the  animals  and 
the  plants;  it  is  a  book  v/hich  teaches  us  the  first  revolu- 
tions of  the  world,  and  which  also  predicts  to  us  its  last; 
it  is  a  book  which  relates  them  in  circumstantial  histo- 
ries, which  exalts  them  in  a  sublime  poetrvj  and  which 
sings  them  in  fervent  hymns  ;  it  is  a  book  full  of  oriental 
imagination,  of  elevation,  of  variety  and  of  boldness ;  it 
is  a  book  which  speaks  of  the  celestial  and  invisible 
world,  and  at  the  same  time  of  the  earth  and  of  things 
visible :  it  is  a  book  to  which  nearly  fifty  writers  of 
every  degree  of  cultivation,  of  every  state,  of  every  con- 
dition, and  separated  by  fifteen  hundred  years  from  one 
another,  have  successively  contributed  ;  it  is  a  book  writ- 
ten first  in  the  centre  of  Asia,  in  the  sands  of  Arabia,  or 
in  the  deserts  of  Judea,  or  in  the  courts  of  the  Jewish 
temple,  or  in  the  rustic  schools  of  the  prophets  of  Bethel 
and  of  Jericho,  or  in  the  sumptuous  palaces  of  Babylon, 
or  upon  the  idolatrous  banks  of  Chebar  ;  and  afterwards, 
in  the  centre  of  western  civilization,  in  the  midst  of  the 
Jews  and  of  their  ignorance,  in  the  midst  of  polytheism 
and  its  idols,  as  in  the  bosom  of  pantheism,  and  of  its  sad 
philosophy  ;  it  is  a  book  whose  first  writer  had  been  for 
forty  years,  the  pupil  of  those  Egyptian  magicians,  who 
regarded  the  sun,  the  stars  and  the  elements,  as  endowed 
with  intellig(nice,  reacting  upon  the  elements,  and  gov- 
erning the  world  by  continual  effluvia  ;  it  is  a  book 
whose  first  writer  preceded,  by  more  than  nine  centuries, 
the  most  ancient  philosophers  of  ancient  Greece  and  of 
Asia,  Thalos  and  Pythagoras,  Zaleucus,  Xenophon, 
Confucius ;  it  is  a  book  which  carries  its  descriptions 


ERRORS.  187 

even  to  the  plains  of  the  invisible  world,  even  to  the 
hierarchies  of  angels,  even  to  the  most  remote  periods  of  f 
the  iLiture,  and  to  the  glorious  scenes  of  the  last  day;  : 
now.  seek  in  its  50  authors,  seek  in  its  66  books,  seek 
in  its  1,189  chapters,  and  its  31.173  verses.  .  .  Seek  one 
alone  of  those  thousand  errors  with  which  the  works' 
of  the  ancients  and  the  moderns  are  filled,  when  they 
speak  either  of  heaven  or  of  earth,  or  of  their  revolutions, 
or  of  their  elements;  seek,  you  will  not  find. 

Its  language  is  unconstrained,  open  ;  it  speaks  of 
every  thing,  and  in  every  strain  ;  it  is  the  prototype,  it 
has  been  the  inimitable  model,  nay,  the  inspirer  of  all 
the  most  elevated  productions  of  poetry.  Ask  Milton, 
the  two  Racines,  Young,  Klopstock.  They  will  tell 
you,  that  this  divine  poetry  is  of  all  the  most  lyric,  the 
boldest,  the  most  sublime  ;  it  rides  on  a  cherub,  it  flies 
upon  the  wings  of  the  wind.  And  yet  this  book  never 
does  violence  to  the  facts  nor  to  the  principles  of  a  sound 
philosophy  of  nature.  Never  will  you  find  a  single  sen- 
tence in  opposition  to  the  just  notions  which  science  has 
imparted  to  us,  concerning  the  form  of  our  globe,  its 
magnitude  and  its  geology  ;  upon  the  void  and  upon 
space;  upon  the  inert  and  obedient  materiality  of  the 
stars  ;  upon  the  planets,  upon  their  masses,  their  courses, 
their  dimensions  or  their  influences  ;  upon  the  suns 
which  people  the  depths  of  space,  upon  their  number 
their  nature,  their  immensity.  So  too  in  speaking  of  the 
invisible  world,  and  of  the  subject  of  angels,  so  new, 
so  unknown,  so  delicate,  this  book  will  not  present  you 
a  single  one  of  its  authors,  who,  in  the  course  of  one 
thousand  five  hundred  and  sixty  years  of  their  writing, 
has  varied  in  describing  the  character  of  charity,  hu- 
mility, fervor  and  purity  which  pertains  to  these  mys- 


1 88  OBJECTIONS. 

terious  beings.  So  too,  in  speaking  of  the  relations  of 
the  celestial  world  to  God,  never  has  one  of  these  fifty 
writers,  either  in  the  Old  or  the  New  Testament,  written 
one  single  word  favorable  to  this  incessant  pantheism 
of  the  Gentile  philosophy.  Nor  shall  you  find  one 
of  the  authors  of  the  Bible  who  has,  in  speaking  of  the 
visible  world,  let  fall  from  his  pen  one  only  of  those . 
sentences  which,  in  other  books,  contradict  the  reality 
of  facts  ;  one  who  makes  the  heavens  a  firmament,  as  do 
the  Seventy,  St.  Jerome,  and  all  the  Fathers  of  the 
Church  j  one  w^ho  makes  of  the  world,  as  Plato,  an 
intelligent  animal ;  one  who  reduces  everything  below, 
to  the  four  physical  elements  of  the  ancients  ;  one  who 
thinks  with  the  Jews,  with  the  Latins  and  the  Greeks, 
with  the  better  spirits  of  antiquity,  with  the  great  Taci- 
tus among  the  ancients,  with  the  great  De  Thou  among 
the  moderns,  with  the  sceptical  Michel  Montaigne,  that 
"  the  stars  have  dominion  and  power,  not  only  over  our 
lives  and  fortunes,  but  our  very  inclinations,  our  dis- 
courses, our  w^lls  ;  that  they  govern,  impel  and  agi- 
tate them  at  the  mercy  of  their  influences  ;  and  that  (as 
our  reason  teaches  us  and  finds  it,)  all  this  lower  world 
is  agitated  by  the  slightest  movement  of  the  heavenly 
bodies.*  You  will  not  find  one  who  has  spoken  of  the 
mountains  as  Mohammed  did,  of  the  cosmogony  as  Buf- 
fon,  of  the  antipodes  as  Lucretius,  as  Plutarch,  as  Pliny, 
as  Lactantius,  as  St.  Augustine,  as  the  Pope  Zachary. 
Surely  if  there  was  found  in  the  Bible,  only  one  of  those 
errors  which  abound  in  the  philosophers,  ancient  as  well 
as  modern,  our  faith  in  the  plenary  inspiration  of  the  Scrip- 
tures would  be  more  than  endangered  ;  we  should  have 

•  Essais,  liv.  ii.  ch.  12.     Facta  etenim  et  vitas  hnminum  suspendit  tA 
astria. 


ERRORS.  189 

(0  admit  that  there  are  errors  in  the  word  of  God,  and 
that  these  erroneous  sentences  appertain  to  a  fallible  wri- 
ter, and  not  to  the  Holy  Spirit ;  for  God  is  not  a  man  that 
he  should  lie;  there  is  in  him  no  variableness, nor  shadow 
of  turning  ;  and  he  to  whom  lying  lips  are  an  abomina- 
tion, cannot  contradict  himself,  nor  dictate  that  which  is 
false. 

There  is,  then,  no  physical  error  in  the  Scriptures  ; 
and  this  great  fact,  which  becomes  always  more  admir- 
able, in  proportion  as  it  is  more  closely  contemplated, 
is  a  striking  proof  of  the  inspiration  which  has  dictated 
to  their  writers,  even  in  the  choice  of  the  least  expres- 
sion.    But  there  is  still  another  fact. 

Not  only  has  the  Bible  admitted  no  false  sentence  or 
expression,  but  it  has  also  employed  words  which  make 
us  recognize,  in  a  way  that  cannot  be  mistaken,  the  sci- 
ence of  the  Almighty.  His  great  object,  doubtless,  was, 
to  reveal  to  us  the  eternal  grandeurs  of  the  invisible 
world,  and  not  the  barren  secrets  of  that  which  perishes. 
Yet  it  often  happens  that  his  language,  when  it  is  atten- 
tively regarded,  gives  a  glimpse  of  knowledge  which  it 
is  not  aiming  to  teach,  but  of  which  he  cannot  be  ig- 
norant, since  knoicledge  is  in  him  a  profound  abyss. 
Not  only  does  he  never  say  any  thing  false  to  us,  even 
incidentally  ;  but  also,  you  will  often  light  upon  words 
which  shall  discover  to  you  the  voice  of  the  world's 
Creator.  You  will  often  remark  there,  a  wisdom,  a 
prudence,  an  exactness,  of  which  the  past  ages  never 
had  a  suspicion,  and  which  the  discoveries  alone  of  the 
telescope,  of  modern  calculation  and  modern  science, 
have  enabled  us  to  appreciate  ;  so  that  its  language  will 
carry,  in  these  features,  the  evident  characters  of  the 
most   entire   inspiration.      The   discreet   and  unusual 


190  OBJECTIONS. 

choice  of  its  expressions,  the  nature  of  certain  details, 
whose  perfect  propriety  and  divine  harmony  with  facts 
were  not  revealed  until  three  thousand  years  afterward, 
the  reserve  in  the  use  of  words,  sometimes  the  very 
boldness  and  strangeness  of  the  language  at  the  time 
when  it  was  written  ; — all  these  signs  will  show  you 
the  learned  One  'par  excellence^  tlie  Ancient  of  days, 
who  is  addressing  children  unquestionably,  but  who 
speaks  like  the  father,  and  who  knows  all  his  house. 

When  the  Scriptures  speak  of  the  form  of  the  earth, 
they  term  it  A  Globe  !*  When  they  speak  of  the  po- 
sition of  this  globe  in  the  bosom  of  the  universe,  they 
suspend  it  upon  nothing  ;  [T'\TT^'2>'2,  ^3^-)t  When  they 
speak  of  its  age,  not  only  do  they  put  its  creation,  as 
well  as  that  of  the  heavens,  at  the  beginnings  that  is, 
before  the  ages,  which  they  cannot  or  will  not  number ; 
but  they  are  also  careful  to  place  before  the  breaking  up 
of  chaos  and  the  creation  of  man,  the  creation  of  the 
angels,  of  the  archangels,  of  the  principalities,  and  of 
the  powers  ;  their  trial ;  the  fall  of  some,  and  their 
ruin  ;  the  perseverance  of  others,  and  their  glory. 
When  they  speak  afterward  of  the  origin  of  our  conti- 
nents, and  of  the  later  creation  of  plants,  animals,  and 
men,  they  give  then  to  this  new  world,  and  to  our  proud 
race,  an  age  so  young,  that  the  men  of  every  period  and 
nation,  and  even  our  modern  schools,  have  foolishly  re- 
volted from  it ;  but  an  age  to  which  they  have  had  to 
consent,  since  the  labors  of  De  Luc,  of  Cuvier,  and  of 
Buckland,  have  so  fully  demonstrated  that  the  surface 
of  the  globe,  as  well  as  the  monuments  of  history,  and 
those  of  science,  were  about  to  command  for  it  the  assent 

•  Isa.  xl.  22.    Job  xxvi.  10.     Prov.  \iii.  27. 

t  Job  xxvi.  7.     KpCjuii^MP  y")f  fi"!  oviivog,  say  the  LXX. 


ERRORS.  191 

of  the  learned  as  well  as  the  vulgar.  When  they  speak 
of  the  heavens,  they  employ,  to  designate  and  to  define 
them,  the  most  philosophic  and  the  most  elegant  expres- 
sion ;  an  expression  which  the  Greeks,  in  the  Septua- 
gint,  the  Latins  in  the  Vulgate,  and  all  the  Christian 
Fathers,  in  their  discourses,  have  pretended  to  improve, 
but  which  they  have  distorted,  because  it  seemed  to 
them  opposed  to  the  science  of  their  day.  The  hea- 
vens, in  the  Bible,  are  the  expanse;  (3^'^pl)*  they  are 
the  vacant  space,  or  ether,  or  immensity,  and  not  the 
firmavientum  of  St.  Jerome ;  nor  the  cTTpqiui^m  of  the 
Alexandrian  interpreters  ;  nor  the  eighth  heaven^  firm, 
solid,  chrystalline,  and  incorruptible  of  Aristotle  and 
of  all  the  ancients.  And  although  the  Hebrew  term, 
so  remarkable,  recurs  seventeen  times  in  the  Old  Tes- 
tament, and  the  Seventy  have  rendered  it  seventeen 
times  by  ajsqiMvux^  (firmament,)  never  have  the  Scrip- 
tures in  the  New  Testament,  used  this  expression  of  the 
Greek  interpreters  in  this  sense,  f  When  they  speak 
of  the  light,  they  present  it  to  us  as  an  element  inde- 
pendent of  the  sun,  and  as  anterior,  by  three  epochs,  to 
the  period  in  which  that  great  luminary  was  formed  :\ 
anticipating  thus  the  systems  of  moderns,  which  lead  us 
to  suppose  with  the  great  Newton,  that  the  universe 
contains  an  ether,  perfectly  subtle,  highly  elastic,  exist- 
ing every  Vv^here,  whose  contractions  and  dilitations 
produce  not  only  the  varied  phenomena  of  light,  but 
those  even  of  gravitation. — When  they  speak  of  the  cre- 
ation of  the  plants,  they  make  them  vegetate,  grow,  and 
bear  seed,  before  the  appearing  of  the  sun,  and  under 

*  Gen.  i  6.     Pj=.  xix.  1. 

t  They  have  used  it  once,  but  to  designate  something  totally  different 
from  the  heavens. 
X  Gen.  i.  4, 14, 


192  OBJECTIONS. 

conditions  of  light,  moisture,  and  heat  quite  different 
from  those  by  which  the  vegetables  of  our  day  are 
nourished  ;*  and  it  is  thus  that  they  reveal  to  us,  for 
many  thousands  of  years,  an  order  of  things  which  the 
fosil  botany  of  our  day  has  just  declared  incontestable, 
and  of  which  the  necessity  is  attested  by  the  gigantic 
forms  of  vegetables  recently  discovered  in  Canada  and 
in  Baffin's  bay — some,  as  Mr.  Marcel  de  Serres,t  re- 
sorting, to  explain  it,  to  a  terrestrial  magnetism  at  that 
time  more  intense,  or  to  aurorse  boreales  more  luminous  ; 
others,  as  M.  de  Candolle,J  to  a  great  inclination  to  the 
ecliptic  (although  in  reality,  according  to  the  famous 
theorem  of  La  Grange,  the  Mecanique  Celeste  confines 
this  variation  of  the  planetary  orbits  within  very  narrow 
limits.)^  When  the  Scriptures  speak  of  the  air,  the 
gravity  of  which  was  unknown  before  Galileo  ;  they 
tell  us  that  at  the  creation,  "  God  gave  to  the  air  its 
WEIGHT  (bp!r)2')  and  to  the  waters  their  just  measure."! 
When  they  speak  of  our  atmosphere  and  of  the  upper 
waters  ;^  they  give  them  an  importance  which  modern 
science  alone  has  justified  ;**  since,  from  their  calcula- 
tions, the  force  annually  employed  by  nature,  for  the 
formation  of  the  clouds,  is  equivalent  to  an  amount  of 
labour  which  the  entire  human  race  could  not  accom- 
plish in  200,000  years. ft  And  when  they  separate 
the  inferior  from  the  superior  waters,  it  is  by  an  ex- 


'  Gen.  i.  12. 

t  Memoires  de  Marcel  de  Serres.  X  Biblloth.  Universelle,  Iviii.  1835. 

§  The  oscillations  of  the  Ecliptic  on  both  sides  of  its  mean  position,  can- 
not he  more  than  1  1-3°. 

I!  Job  .xxviii.  25.  TT  Gen.  i.  7. 

*•  See  the  calculations  of  Leslie. 

tl  Annuaire  du  bur.  des  longit,  1835,  p.  196.  Arago,  in  this  calculation, 
supposes  that  800,000.000  form  the  population  of  the  globe,  and  that  only 
the  half  of  this  number  are  able  to  work. 


ERRORS.  193 

panse^  and  not  by  a  solid  sphere,  as  their  translators 
would  have  it.  When  they  speak  of  the  mountains, 
they  distinguish  them  as  primary  and  secondary ;  they 
represent  them  as  being-  born  ;  they  make  them  rise  ; 
they  make  them  melt  like  wax  ;  they  abase  the  valleys  ; 
in  a  word,  they  speak  as  a  geological  poet  of  our  day 
would  do.  "  The  mountains  were  lifted  up,  O  Lord, 
and  the  valleys  were  abased  in  the  place  which  thou 
hadst  assigned  them  !"*  When  they  speak  of  the  hu- 
man race,  of  every  tribe,  color  and  language,  they  give 
them  one  only  and  the  same  origin,  although  the  phi- 
losophy of  every  age  has  so  often  revolted  against  this 
truth,  and  while  that  of  the  moderns  finds  itself  com- 
pelled to  acknowledge  it.f  When  they  speak  of  the 
interior  state  of  our  globe,  they  declare  two  great  facts 
long  unknown  to  the  learned,  but  rendered  incontesta- 
ble by  recent  discoveries  ;  the  one,  relating  to  its  solid 
crust,  the  other  to  the  great  waters  which  it  covers.  In 
speaking  of  its  solid  covering,  they  teach  us  that,  while 
its  surface  gives  us  bread  ;  beneath,  (n''i1?in)  it  is  on 
FIRE  \%  elsewhere,  that  it  is  reserved  unto  fire,  and  that 
it  will  be  burned  in  the  last  times,  with  all  the  works 
which  are  found  therein. t^  And  when  they  speak  of 
the  waters  that  our  globe  contains,  they  refer  to  them 
as  the  only  cause,  at  least  in  this  relation,  of  the  im- 
mense inundations  which  have  (according  to  the  learned 
themselves)  completely  and  for  a  long  time  submerged 
it,  at  different  periods.     And  while  the  learned  tell  us 

*  Ps.  xc.  2  ;  xcvii.  5 ;  civ.  6,  8,  9;  cxliv.  5. — Prov.  viii.  25. — Zech.  xiv.  4,  8. 

^  See  Sumner  :  The  Records  of  the  Creation,  vol.  1,  p.  286;  also  Prof. 
Zimmerman  ;  Geographical  history  of  man.  Wiseman's  3d  Discourse  on 
the  natural  history  of  the  human  race,  vol.  1,  p.  149. 

4  Job,  xxviii.  5 ;  literally  :  "  beneath,  it  is  overturned,  and  as  on  fire." 

§  2  Peter  iii.  7—10. 

M7 


194  OBJECTIONS. 

of  the  shallowness  of  the  seas  ;  while  ihey  assure  us 
that  an  elevation  of  the  land,  only  656  feet,  or  legs  than 
twice  the  height  of  the  tower  of  Strasburg  would  suf- 
fice to  cause  the  Baltic  Sea,  the  North  Sea,  St.  George's 
Channel  and  the  British  Channel  to  disappear  ;  and 
that  Mount  Blanc,  removed  into  the  depth  of  the  Pacific 
Ocean,  would  be  sufficiently  high,  to  appear  there  as 
an  island  ;  whilst  La  Place  has  thought  we  may  infer 
from  the  elevation  of  the  tides,  that  the  mean  depth  of 
the  ocean  does  not  exceed  3280  feet,  (the  height  of  the 
Salene  or  Heckla  ;)  while  they  thus  prove  to  us  how 
insufficient  the  seas  are  for  the  immense  inundations  our 
globe  has  undergone — the  Scriptures  teach  us,  that 
"  the  earth  is  standing  out  of  the  water  and  in  the  wa- 
ter,"* and  that  its  solid  crust  covers  a  great  abyss 
(uZll  t^'^nSl')  whose  waters  broke  out  C^^^'pl^lD)  with 
violent  dashings,t  at  the  epoch  of  the  deluge,  as  at  that 
of  the  chaos  and  of  the  numberless  ages  which  had 
preceded  it. 

Whea  they  speak  of  the  deluge,  they  suppose  inun- 
dations and  disorder,  such  as  infidels  of  former  times 
have  ever  considered  too  mighty  for  belief ;  and  yet,  in 
the  present  day,  geologists  rather  feel  them  to  be  insuf- 
ficient to  account  for  all  the  devastation  they  find  in  ex- 
amining the  earth. — When  tbi/ey  recount  the  circum- 
stances and  the  progress  of  this  immense  submersion, 
they  reveal  facts  which  the  science  of  moderns  has  not 
yet  fully  adopted,  but  which  it  cannot  contradict,  any 
more  than  it  can  other  facts  . — an  internal  fire,  which 
raising  the  temperature  of  the  seas  and  of  the  deep  wa- 
ters, caused  on  the  one  side,  an  enormous  evaporation 
and  impetuous   rains,  as  if  the  flood-gates  of  heaven 

•  2  Peter,  iii.  5.  t  Gen.  vii.  11. 


ERRORS.  195 

were  opened  ;  and  on  the  other,  an  irresistable  dilation, 
which  not  only  raised  the  waters  from  their  depths, 
broke  up  the  fountains  of  the  great  abyss,  and  raised 
its  powerful  waves  to  the  level  of  the  highest  mountains,* 
but  which  caused  immense  stratifications  of  calcareous 
carbonate,  under  the  double  action  of  a  great  heat  and  a 
pressure  equivalent  to  8000  atmospheres.  When  they 
would  describe  the  state  of  our  globe  at  the  period  pre- 
ceding the  breaking  up  of  its  chaos,  they  suppose  an  in- 
ternal heat,  and  cover  it  entirely  with  waters  in  a  state 
of  liquidity.t  ¥/hen  they  tell  us  of  the  creation  of  the 
birds  and  of  the  fishes,  they  give  them  a  common  ori- 
gin ;  and  it  is  Imown  that  modern  naturalists  have  es- 
tablished between  these  two  classes  of  animals,  intimate 
relations,  imperceptible  to  the  eye,  but  revealed  by  anat- 
omy, even  in  the  microscopic  form  of  the  globules  of 
their  blood.:]:  When  they  arrest  the  sun,  that  is  to  say, 
the  rotation  of  the  earth,  in  the  days  of  Joshua,  the  son 
of  Nun  ;  the  moon  must  also  stay  her  progress  in  the 
same  degree  and  for  the  same  cause  as  the  sun  ;  a  pre- 


*  Water  is  dilated  1-23,  in  passing  from  The  temperature  of  ice- 
melting  to  that  of  water-boiling.  An  elevation  of  from  16  to  17  degrees 
Reaumur  will  then  increase  iis  volume  1-111.  Now  we  find  by  an  easy 
calculation,  that  the  quantity  of  water  necessary  to  submerge  the  earth 
to  the  height  of  1-1000  of  the  radius  of  our  globe  is  equal  to  1-333  of  its 
entire  volume,  or  1-111  of  its  third  If  then  we  suppose  that  the  one-third 
of  the  terrestial  globe  is  metallic  (at  the  mean  specific  gravity  of  12  1-2;) 
that  the  second  third  is  solid  (at  the  weight  of  2  1--2;)  and  that  the  re- 
maining third  is  water  ;  then,  1st,  the  mean  specific  gravity  of  the  entire 
globe  will  be  equal  to  5  1-2  (agreeably  to  the  conclusions  of  Maskeline  and 
of  Cavendish;)  and  2dly,  it  will  have  been  sufficient  for  the  submersion 
of  the  earth  to  the  height  of  6,-36S  metres,  or  154G  metres  above  Mount 
Blanc  ;  that  the  temperature  of  the  mass  of  the  water  in  the  days  of  the 
deluge,  should  have  risen  to  16  degrees  of  Reaumur.  This  was  very  nearly 
the  hypothesis  of  Sir  Henry  Englefield. 

t  Gen.  i.  2.  X  Memoirs  of  Dr.  J.  L.  Provost  at  Geneva. 


196  OBJECTIONS. 

caution,  says  Chaubard,*  that  an  astronomy  ignorant 
.if  our  diurnal  motion  woul-d  never  have  imagined ; 
since  after  ail,  the  purpose  of  this  miracle  was  but  to 
prolong  the  day.f  When  they  represent  the  Lord  as 
coming  like  the  lightning,  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye, 
at  the  last  day,  they  again  bear  testimony  to  the  rotation 
3f  the  earth,  and  to  the  existence  of  the  antipodes  ;  for 
at  this  solemn  hour  it  will  be,  say  they,  day  for  one  por- 
tion of  mankind,  and  at  the  same  time  night  for  another 
portion. I  When  they  describe  the  past  and  future 
wealth  of  the  land  of  Canaan,  to  which  a  wonderful 
fertility  of  vegetation  is  promised  for  the  latter  times, 
they  term  it  rich,  not  only  in  springs,  but  in  subterrane- 
ous waters  ;  and  seem  to  anticipate  the  excavations  by 
which  the  moderns  have  learned  to  fertilize  a  sterile 
country.^  When  they  speak  of  the  languages  of  men, 
they  give  them  a  primitive  unity  that  seems  to  be  con- 
tradicted by  our  first  study  of  the  different  idioms  of  na- 
tions, but  which  a  more  profound  examination  confirms. 
When  they  describe  the  deliverance  of  Noah,  they  give 
to  the  ark  dimensions  which  at  first  sight  we  pronounce 
too  limited.  Had  we  been  charged  with  the  narrative, 
we  should  have  increased  them  a  hundred  fold  ;  but  a 
study  of  the  subject  has  proved  them  sufficient.  When 
they  speak  of  the  number  of  the  stars,  instead  of  suppos- 
ing a  thousand  (1026)  as  does  the  catalogue  af  Hippar- 

•  Elements  of  Geology  by  Chaubard,  vol.  i.  8vo.  Paris.  The  niithor 
there  establishes  by  numerous  arguments,  the  chronological  coincidence 
of  the  miracle  of  Joshua  with  the  deluges  of  Ogyges  and  of  Deucaliou. 
He  remarks  that  these  two  inundations  refer  to  the  same  ejjoch,  last  the 
Kame  period  of  time,  are  accompanied  by  the  same  catastrophes,  and  pro- 
duce currents  in  the  sea  from  west  to  east. 

t  Josh.  X.  12.  X  Luke,  xvii.  31,  34.     Mat.  xxiv. 

§  Deut.  viii.  7.  '*  A  land  of  brooks  of  water,  of  I'oun tains  and  deeps  that 
spring  out  of  valleys  and  hills;"  (nT^nP,.)  See  also  Isa.  xxxv.  6.  E». 
xxxi.  4.    Ps.  Ixxviii.  16. 


ERRORS.  1 97 

chus  or  of  Ptolemy  ;  while  in  the  two  united  hemi- 
spheres the  most  practised  eye  can  see  but  5000  ;  while 
the  human  eye,  before  the  invention  of  the  telescope, 
could  perceive  but  1000  in  the  clearest  night ;  the 
Scriptures  pronounce  them  innumerable  ;  and  like 
Herschel,  they  compare  them  to  the  sand  of  the  sea  ; 
they  tell  us,  that  with  his  own  hand  and  in  infinite 
space,  God  has  sown  them  lilce  the  dust ;  and  that  not- 
withstanding- their  number,  •'  he  calls  them  all  by  their 
names."  When  they  speak  of  this  immensity,  listen 
with  what  learned  and  sublime  wisdom  they  depict  it ; 
how  prudent  they  are  in  their  noble  poetry,  how  philo- 
sophical in  their  sublimity  ;  '=  the  heavens  declare  the 
glory  of  God  ;  the  expanse  showeth  his  handy-work  ; 
there  is  no  speech  nor  language  where  their  voice  is 
not  heard."  When  they  speak  of  the  relation  of  the 
stars  to  this  sublunary  world  ;  instead,  like  the  ancients, 
of  supposing  them  animated,  instead  of  ever  attributing 
to  them  an  influence  over  humarf  events,  as  did,  for  so 
long  a  time,  the  Christian  people  of  Italy  and  of  France, 
even  to  the  period  of  the  reformation  ;  they  are,  say 
they,  inert  matter,  brilliant,  v^ithout  doubt,  but  disposed 
and  guided  by  a  creating  hand  :  the  heavens,  even  the 
heaven  of  heavens  move  with  the  order,  the  entirenes:-^ 
and  the  unity  of  an  army  advancing  to  battle.  "  Lift  up 
your  eyes  on  high,  and  behold  who  hath  created  these 
things,  that  bringeth  out  their  host  by  number  ;  he 
calleth  them  all  by  names,  by  the  greatness  of  his 
might,  for  that  he  is  strong  in  power,  not  one  faileth." 
"  Why  sayest  thou,  oh  Jacob,  and  speakest,  oh  Israel ; 
my  way  is  hid  from  the  Lord,  and  my  judgment  is 
passed  over  from  my  God  ?"*    When  they  describe  the 

•  Isaiah  xl.  26,  27. 

17* 


198  OBJECTIONS. 

heavens,  they  are  careful  to  disting-uish  them  ;  first^  as 
the  heaven  of  the  birds,  of  the  tempests,  of  the  powers 
of  the  air,  and  of  evil  spirits  ;  then  the  heaven  of  the 
stars  ;  and  lastly,  the  third  heaven,  even  the  heaven  of 
heavens.  But  when  they  speak  of  the  God  of  all  that ; 
how  beautiful  their  language,  and  at  the  same  time, 
how  tender  !  "  The  voice  of  his  thunder  is  in  the  hea- 
vens," say  they,*  "  but  the  heavens,  even  the  heaven  of 
heavens,  cannot  contain  Him."t  "  To  whom,  then, 
will  ye  liken  Him  ?  or  what  likeness  will  ye  compare 
unto  Him  ?  He  has  set  his  glory  above  the  heavens. 
Who  humbleth  himself  to  behold  the  things  that  are  in 
heaven.  Whither  shall  I  go  from  thy  Spirit,  or  whi- 
ther shall  I  flee  from  th)--  presence  ?"  J  But  when  they 
seem  to  have  said  enough  of  all  these  visible  grandeurs  : 
these  are  yet,  say  they,  but  the  beginning  of  his  ways  ; 
and  how  little  a  portion  of  him  is  known  !  And  lastly, 
when  they  seem  to  have  told  all  the  grandeurs  of  the 
Creator  of  all  these  immensities,  listen  yet  again :  "  He 
counts  the  number  of  the  stars,  and  calls  them  all  by 
name  ;  at  the  same  time  that  He  healeth  the  broken  in 
heart,  and  bindeth  up  their  wounds. §  He  puts  your 
tears  into  his  bottle  ;  the  sparrow  falls  not  to  the  ground 
without  his  care  ;  even  the  hairs  of  your  head  are 
numbered.  11  The  eternal  God  is  thy  refuge,  and  under- 
neath are  the  everlasting  arms.l"  Oh,  my  God,  how- 
manifold  are  thy  works ;  how  excellent  are  they,  but 
thou  hast  put  thy  mercy  above  all  thy  name.  Open 
thou  mine  eyes  that  I  may  behold  wondrous  things  out 
of  thy  law."**     Again,  in  the  midst  of  all  these  gran- 

•  Ps.  Ixxvii.  19.  f  1  Kings,  viii.  27. 

^  Isaiah  xl.  18.     Ps.  viii,  1;  cxiii.  6;  cxxxix.  7. 

yPs.  cxlvii.  II  Ps.  Ivi.  8.    Matt.  x.  29,  30. 

f  Deut.  xxxiii.  2C,  27.  *•  Ps.  cxxxviii.  2;  cxix.  18. 


ERRORS.  199 

deurs — '•  Whence  then  cometh  wisdom  ?  And  where  is 
the  place  of  understanding  ?  The  depth  saith  ;  it  is 
not  in  me.  God  understandeth  the  wa}?-  thereof,  and  he 
knoweth  the  place  thereof;  for  he  looketh  to  the  ends 
of  the  earth,  and  seeth  the  whole  heavens  :  to  make 
the  weight  for  the  winds  ;  and  he  weigheth  the  waters 
by  measure.  When  he  made  a  decree  for  rain,  and 
a  way  for  the  lightning  of  the  thunder,  then  did  he 
see  it  and  declare  it ;  he  declared  it  ;  yea,  and  searched 
it  out.  And  unto  man  he  said  ;  behold  the  fear  of  the 
Lord,  that  is  wisdom,  and  to  depart  from  evil  is  under- 
standing."* 

Such  then  is  the  inspiration  of  the  Holy  Scriptures ; 
thus  then  we  see  beams  of  light  reflected  from  heaven, 
when  we  had  thought  to  detect  only  error.  If  with 
deferential  touch  you  draw  the  obscure  veil,  with  which 
they  are  sometimes  covered  for  your  sake,  you  will  be- 
hold there  a  majestic  light ;  for,  like  Moses,  they 
descend  from  the  sacred  mount,  and  bring  to  you  the 
tables  of  testimony  in  their  hands  !  There,  where 
you  feared  darkness,  you  have  found  light ;  there,  where 
an  objection  has  been  started,  God  produces  a  fresh  wit- 
ness of  the  truth  ;  where  a  doubt  had  existed,  he  puts 
an  assurance. 

So  far  as  this  seventh  objection  is  concerned,  we  find 
difficulties  converted  into  proofs  of  the  inspiration  of  the 
sacred  volume  ;  and  we  see  in  the  light  of  this  and  of 
many  other  facts,  that  every  page  gives  evidence  that 
the  entire  Bible  is  the  word  of  God. 

Let  us  listen  to  another  and  the  last  objection. 

•  Job  xxviii. 


200  OBJECTIONS. 

SECTION  VIII. 

The  very  acknoioledgment  of  St.  Paul. 

We  are  sometimes  told,  that — 

"  It  would  be  superfluous  to  dispute  the  fact  of  the  partial  and 
interrupted  inspiration  of  the  Scriptures,  since  oven  the  Apostle 
Paul  has  plainly  decided  the  question.  Has  he  not  been  ever 
careful  to  distinguish  betvpeen  those  passages  which  he  uttered  by- 
inspiration,  and  those  advanced  in  his  own  name,  as  a  Christian  1 
Does  he  not,  in  his  first  epistle  to  the  Corinthians,  express  very 
clearly,  three  several  times,  this  distinction,  in  answer  to  different 
questions  addressed  to  him  on  the  subject  of  marriage  7  And  first, 
in  the  25th  verse  of  the  7th  chapter,  when  he  says  ;  '  Now  con- 
cerning virgins,  I  have  no  cummandment  op  the  Lord  ;  3''et  I 
give  my  judgment,  as  one  that  hath  obtained  mercy  of  the  Lord 
to  be  faithful.'  Then  in  the  10th  verse,  where  he  writes  ;  '  unto 
the  married  /  command,  (yet  not  I,  but  the  Lord  ;)  let  not  the 
wife  depart  from  her  husband,  and  let  not  the  husband  put  away 
his  wife.'  And  finally,  in  the  12th  verse  he  adds  ;  '  but  to  the 
rest  speak  I,  not  the  Lord  ;  if  any  brother  hath  a  wife  that  be- 
lieveth  not,  and  she  be  pleased  to  dwell  with  him  ;  let  him  not  put 
her  away,'  &c.  It  is  then  easily  seen  by  t?iese  three  sentences. 
that  there  are  passages  in  the  epistle  of  this  apostle,  that  are  of 
Paul,  and  other  passages  which  are  of  God  ;  that  is  to  say,  insi)i.red 
passages,  and  passages  uninspired.''^ 

The  answer  is  obvious.  When  the  objectionable  pas- 
sages are  more  closely  examined,  it  will  be  found  that 
they  cannot  be  adduced  as  proof  against  the  doctrine  of 
a  full  inspiration. 

Far  from  limiting  the  divinity  of  apostolic  language, 
these  verses,  on  the  contrary,  speak  as  only  the  fullest 
and  most  sovereign  inspiration  could  authorize.  St. 
Paul  could  speak  thus,  only  by  placing  his  epistles,  if 
I  may  so  say,  as  St.  Peter  has  done*  on  the  level  with 

*  2  Peter  iii.  6. 


ERRORS.  201 

THE  OTHER  sacred  writings :  nay,  we  must  say ;  above 
THEM,  (inasmuch  as  we  there  hear  a  more  recent  and 
binding  expression  of  the  will  of  our  Lord.)  Let  us 
examine  this  point.  What  does  the  apostle  of  Jesus 
Christ  seek  in  this  chapter?  He  there  treats  of  three 
cases  of  conscience  ;  concerning  one  of  them,  God  has 
commanded  nothing  and  interdicted  nothing.  "  So  then 
he  that  giveth  her  in  marriage,  doth  well.  I  speak  this 
by  PERMISSION,  and  not  of  comma-tidment^  but  as  an  apos- 
tle I  give  from  the  Lord,  merely  counsel ;"  and  he  is 
careful  to  add  in  the  fortieth  verse  ;  "  I  think  also  that 
I  have  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord."  The  Lord  would  leave 
you  free  herein,  says  the  apostle ;  he  will  place  no 
snare  in  your  path  ;  and  if  you  care  not  to  follow  the 
general  advice  that  is  given  to  you,  you  violate  no  com- 
mandment, and  commit  no  sin  \  only,  "  he  that  mar- 
rieth,  doeth  well ;  he  that  marrieth  not,  doeth  better." 

In  regard  to  the  other  case  however,  be  careful ;  for 
HERE  IS  A  COMMANDMENT  OF  THE  LoRD.  He  has  already 
made  known  his  will.*  and  I  have  nothing  new  to  de- 
clare unto  you.  But  the  Old  Testament  and  Jesus 
Christ  have  spoken.  It  is  not  therefore  /,  the  Apostle 
of  Jesus  Christ,  it  is  the  Lord,  who  already  has  made 
known  his  will  unto  you.  "  And  unto  the  married  I 
command,  yet  not  I,  but  the  Lord  ;  let  not  the  wife  de- 
part from  her  husband,  and  let  not  the  husband  put 
away  his  wife."  (v.  10,  11.) 

For  the  third  case,  that  of  the  brother  who  finds  him- 
self bound  to  an  unbelieving  wife ;  you  had  a  command- 
ment from  the  Lord  in  the  Old  Testament.  I  come  to 
revoke  it,  and  I  think  also  that  1  have  the  spirit  of  the 
Lord.     I  abolish  then  the  former  commandment,  and 

•Matt.  V.  31,  32;  Mai.  ii.  14. 


202  OBJECTrONS. 

am  charged  to  replace  it  by  a  contrary  order.  It  is  not 
the  Lord  (v.  12)  who  forbids  you  to  put  away  an  un- 
believing wife  ;  it  is  "/,  Paul  an  Apostle,  not  of  men, 
neither  by  man,  but  by  Jesus  Christ  and  God  the  Father, 
who  raised  him  from  the  dead."* 

We  see  then,  with  the  clearness  of  noon-day : — the 
Apostle  instead  of  appealing  to  the  ancient  word  of  the 
Lord,  revokes  it,  to  replace  it  by  a  contrary  order  ;  so 
that  this  passage,  very  far  from  weakening  the  inspira- 
tion, confirms  it  strongly  ;  since  it  would  have  been  no- 
thing less  than  an  outrageous  blasphemy,  if  the  Apostle 
had  not  felt,  that  in  using  this  language,  he  was  the 
mouth  of  God  ;  and  if  he  had  dared  to  say  by  his  own 
authority — "  It  is  not  the  Lord,  it  is  I.  I  myself  tell 
you,  and  not  the  Lord :  if  any  man  have  an  unbelieving 
wife,  let  him  not  send  her  away."  The  Lord  had  given 
a  contrary  commandment. f 

We  must  then  acknowledge  that  these  verses  of  St. 
Paul,  far  from  authorizing  the  supposition  of  any  min- 
gling of  human  wisdom  in  the  Scriptures  of  the  New 
Testament ;  are  there  to  attest  that,  in  their  epistles  and 
in  the  most  familiar  details  of  their  epistles,  the  Apostles 
were  the  mouth  of  God,  and  ranked  themselves  not  only 
as  successors  of  Moses  and  the  ancient  Prophets,  but 
even  above  them  ;  as  a  second  message  from  God  must 
supersede  that  which  was  before  it,  and  as  the  New 
Testament  must  surpass  the  Old,  if  not  in  excellence,  at 
least  in  authority. 

We  have  heard  some  oppose  our  doctrine  yet  again, 
by  citing  as  an  acknowledgement  of  the  intermission 
and  imperfection  of  his  inspiration,  those  words  of  St. 
Paul ;  in  which,  after  having  related  to  the  Corinthians 

•  Gal.  i.  1.  t  Deut.  xxiv.  2  ;  1  Kings  xi.  2 


ERRORS.  203 

his  rapture  to  the  third  heaven,  he  adds  :  "  whether  in 
the  body  or  out  of  the  body,  I  cannot  tell,  God  know- 
eth."*  Can  it  be  supposed,  say  they,  '-that  the  Holy 
Spirit  was  ignorant  how  this  miracle  was  accomplished  ? 
Such  a  passage  must  be  from  Paul,  and  not  from  God." 

We  answer  that,  although  the  Holy  Spirit  was  not 
ignorant  of  it,  Paul  Avas  ;  and  that  the  Holy  Spirit  chose 
that  Paul  should  inform  us  of  his  own  ignorance.  Shall 
we  forget  that  God  has  always  employed  the  personal- 
ity of  the  sacred  writers,  in  the  Sacred  Scriptures,  to  re- 
veal himself  to  us  ;  and  it  is  thus  that  he  has  ever  chosen 
to  instruct  his  Church  7  When  David  speaking  by  the 
Spirit,  cries  in  the  Psalms,  that  he  knows  his  transgres- 
sions, that  his  sin  is  continually  before  him, — and  that 
he  was  conceived  in  sin  ;  it  is  surely  not  the  Holy  Spirit 
who  knows  his  own  transgressions,  and  whose  sin  is  con- 
tinually before  him;  but  it  is  the  Holy  Spirit  who  for 
our  sakes,  has  put  the  language  of  repentance  in  the 
heart  and  on  the  lips  of  his  humiliated  prophet.  It  is 
in  a  sense  analogous  to  this,  that  he  made  St.  Paul  say ; 
'•  whether  it  were  in  the  body,  I  know  not ;  God 
knows." 

We  have  not  yet  examined  all  these  objections. 
Three  now  remain,  which  we  would  rather  call  eva- 
sions ;  because  instead  of  resting  as  the  others  do,  on 
some  argument  or  facts  ;  they  are  rather  systems,  by 
which  a  portion  of  the  Scriptures  is  withdrawn  from  the 
divine  influence  of  Theopneusty.  It  remains  for  us  to 
investigate  them. 

'  2  Cor.  xii.  4. 


CHAPTER  III. 

EXAMINATION  OF  THE  EVASIONS. 

Several  systems  of  exceptions  have  been  proposed. 
Some,  while  they  admit  that  the  thoughts  of  the  Scrip- 
tures have  been  given  by  God;  maintain  notwithstanding, 
that  the  style  and  the  expressions  are  human  ; — others 
have  excluded  from  inspiration,  the  purely  historical 
books ; — others  again  have  Avished  to  exclude  certain 
details,  which  to  them  appear  too  vulgar  and  too  unedi- 
fying  to  be  attributed  to  the  Holy  Spirit. 

SECTION  I. 

Could  Inspiratio'ii  regard  the  Thoughts,  ic'ithout  extending 
also  to  the  Language  7 

"  The  prophets  and  apostles,"  say  some,  "  in  writing  their  sacred 
books,  were  inspired  in  thought,  without  doubt ;  but  we  must  be- 
lieve that  they  were  then  left  to  themselves  in  the  clioice  of  lan- 
guage ;  the  ideas  were  given  by  God,  and  the  expression  by  man. 
The  task  of  the  sacred  writers,  resembles  somewhat  that  of  a 
man,  to  whom  very  highly  colored  pictures  are  presented  ia  quick 
succession  ;  while  he  is  bidden  to  describe  them,  just  so  far  as  his 
eye  maj'  have  rested  on  them.  It  is  thus  that  the  Holy  Spirit  may 
have  presented  sacred  truths  to  the  minds  of  the  evangelists  and 
prophets,  leaving  them  only  the  care  of  expressing  them;  and  this 
manner  of  conceiving  of  their  labor,  will  account  satisfactorily  for 
the  diversities  of  style  that  their  writings  present." 

We  reply ; 

1.  That  this  theory  is  directly  contrary  to  the  testi- 
mony of  the  Scriptures.  The  Bible  declares  to  us,  that 
it  has  been  written,  "  not  in  the  words  which  man's  wis- 


THE    THOUGHTS   INSPIRED.  20C 

dom  teacheth,  but  which  the  Holy  Ghost  teacheth."* 
They  call  themselves ;  "  the  word  of  God,  the  words  of 
God,  the  voice  of  God,  the  oracles  of  God,  the  Holy 
Scriptures,  the  Scripture  of  God.f"  A  scripture  or  writ- 
ing is  composed  of  letters  and  of  words,  and  not  of  in- 
visible thoughts  only :  now  "  all  Scripture  is  given  by 
inspiration  of  God,"  v^'eare  told.  That  which  is  ^VRIT- 
TEN,  is  then  inspired  of  God  [deoTtpevarog  ■^)  and  that 
which  is  inspired  of  God,  is  the  whole  Scripture,  that 
is,  all  that  is  written  (^naaa  /o«gf7J.)| 

2.  If  this  theory  is  anti-biblical,  it  is  also  very  irra- 
tional. 

The  thoughts  of  our  fellow-men  clothe  themselves  in 
words.  Spirits  are  revealed  to  us  only  in  their  fleshly 
tabernacles.  You  learn  their  character,  you  know  their 
will  and  experiences,  you  even  suspect  their  existence, 
and  you  enter  into  relation  with  them,  only  Avhen  they 
are  clothed  with  flesh,  and  have  received  organs  by 
which  they  manifest  themselves  to  you.  My  most  inti- 
mate friend  is  known  to  me.  only  by  the  language  of 
his  person,  voice,  and  actions.  If  he  had  not  these,  in 
vain  might  he  dwell  beside  me  for  twenty  years ;  he 
would  be  to  me  as  if  he  were  not. 

To  pursue  this  thought;  such  is  to  us  the  inevitable 
dependence  of  the  soul  on  its  organs,  and  of  ideas  on 
words,  that  we  not  only  learn  the  existence  of  the  one 
by  the  language  of  the  other;  but  even  after  hearing 
their  voice,  we  perceive  their  true  character,  only  just 
so  far  as  we  have  the  assurance,  that  the  organ  is  a 
faithful  interpreter  of  the  mind,  that  the  word  is  the  ex- 
act image  of  the  idea,  and  the  proposition  that  of  the 
thought      So  long  as  a  fear  may  be  admitted,  that  lan- 

*  1  Cor.  ii.  13.         t  passim.  Rom.  iii.  2 ;  Acts  vii.  38.        J  2  Tim.  iii.  16. 


206 

guage  has  not  been  the  obedient  and  competent  servant 
of  the  will,  we  can  have  no  confidence  that  we  may  not 
be  mistaken.  Although  we  should  know  that  God 
himself  had  breathed  the  purest  thoughts  of  heaven  into 
the  soul  of  a  writer,  in  order  that  we  might  have  a  sure 
revelation  of  them  by  his  words  ;  yet  must  he  always 
give  us  the  assurance  that  these  words  are  well  chosen, 
that  they  reflect  the  divine  thoughts  with  exactness,  and 
that  they  reproduce  without  change,  all  the  objects  de- 
posited in  the  secret  places  of  the  writer's  soul. 

Language  is  then  the  wonderful  mirror  that  reflects 
to  us  the  depths  of  the  mind. 

Suppose  you  were  a  son  in  affliction,  and  that  God,  to 
comfort  you,  should  present  you  for  a  few  moments,  in 
a  glass,  the  ever-loved  features  of  your  mother ;  would 
it  satisfy  you  that  he  caused  it  to  approach  very  near  to 
you,  and  in  such  a  position  that  the  light  from  the  object 
should  reach  your  eyes  abundantly  ?  Certainly  not,  if 
the  mirror  has  a  curve,  a  flaw,  or  a  stain.  Uneven  and 
faithless  in  its  reflection,  how  would  it  console  you? 
You  would,  it  is  true,  have  near  you,  the  smiling  fea- 
tures of  a  mother,  her  heart  would  seem  to  beat  near 
yours,  with  lively  emotions;  her  inimitable  look  would 
convey  to  you  the  ardent  expression  of  her  maternal 
wishes  and  her  august  blessing  ;  but  all  would  be  in  vain; 
•you  would  see  only  the  eye  of  a  stranger,  perhaps  only 
a  hideous  expression,  only  a  deformed  being  and  a  re- 
volting expression.  Oh,  my  good  mother,  this  is  not 
then  thyself!  you  would  exclaim. 

These  reflections  will  suffice  to  show  us,  how  irrational 

is  the  idea  of  receiving  with  exactness  and  certainty,  the 

thoughts  of  others,  while  their  language  is  inaccurate 

and  uncertain.     Can  you  arrive  at  their  idea  in  any 

18 


THE    THOUGHTS   INSPIRED.  207 

Other  wa}^,  than  by  their  words  ?  And  without  the 
words  of  God,  how  are  you  confident  that  you  possess 
the  thoughts  of  God? 

3.  This  tlieory  of  a  divine  revelation,  wherein  you 
have  the  inspiration  of  thought  and  not  of  language,  is 
necessarily  so  irrational,  that  it  cannot  be  sincere,  and 
raust  soon  deceive  even  those  who  have  received  it ;  be- 
fore they  are  aware  of  it,  it  leads  them  down  much  lower 
in  their  argument,  than  their  first  thesis  had  seemed  to 
indicate.  Listen  to  them.  "  If  the  words  are  of  man," 
say  they  ;  "  the  thoughts  are  of  God." 

And  how  do  they  prove  this  to  you  ?  Alas !  yet 
again,  by  attributing  to  this  word  of  God,  contradictions, 
mistakes,  ignorance.  Is  it  then  the  words  only  that  they 
condemn  ;  or  do  they  not  rather  find  these  pretended 
errors  in  the  thoughts,  much  more  than  in  the  lan- 
guage? This  must  be  the  consequence  of  denying  the 
inspiration  of  the  words;  for,  a  revelation  of  the  mind 
of  God  demands  always  an  inspiration  of  the  v/ord  of 
God. 

4.  This  theory  is  not  only  anti-biblical,  irrational, 
and  hurtful ;  it  is  also  arbitrarily  assumed ;  it  is  but  a 
gratuitous  hypothesis. 

5.  Again, — it  is  very  useless,  for  it  proves  nothing. 
You  find  it  difficult,  you  say,  to  conceive  how  the  Holy 
Spirit  can  dictate  the  words  of  the  sacred  Scriptures;  but 
can  you  better  explain  how  he  has  suggested  the 
thoughts  ?  Can  you,  for  example,  more  readily  ex- 
plain how  God  revealed  to  Moses  the  knowledge  of  all 
the  scenes  of  creation,  or  to  St.  John,  that  of  all  the 
scenes  of  the  latter  day  ;  than  to  imagine  how  he  dicta- 
ted to  them  the  narrative  of  it ;  whether  in  the  Hebrew 
or  the  Greek  tongue  ? 


208  EVASIONS. 

6.  Bear  with  us  still. — The  extreme  inconsistency  of 
this  theory  must  strike  every  attentive  mind  ;  since  even 
they  who  maintain  it  the  most  earnestly,  are  often  com- 
pelled to  admit,  that  the  largest  portion  of  the  Scriptures 
require  the  inspiration  of  God,  even  to  their  very 

WORDS. 

Suppose  that  the  Holy  Spirit  should  now  command 
you  to  go  out  on  the  public  square,  and  proclaim  there 
in  Russ  or  Tamul,  "  the  wonderful  things  of  God ;" 
what  would  be  your  position,  if  he  were  to  inspire  only 
the  thoughts,  without  giving  you  the  words  ?  You 
would  have  before  your  eyes,  the  third  heaven,  and  in 
your  heart,  the  transports  of  archangels  ;  yet  must  you 
remain  mute  and  stupid  before  this  multitude  of  men. 
To  render  your  inspiration  useful  to  them,  the  periods, 
sentences  and  smallest  words  of  your  discourse  must  all 
be  given  you.  What  do  I  say?  Your  own  thoughts 
might  well  be  dispensed  with,  provided  you  could  utter, 
even  without  fully  comprehending  them,  the  thoughts 
of  God  in  the  words  of  God.  Let  us  carry  this  suppo- 
sition back  to  Jerusalem  and  to  the  persons  of  the 
Apostles.  When  the  fishermen  of  Capernaum  and 
Bethsaida,  assembled  in  their  upper  chamber  on  the 
day  of  Pentecost,  received  command  to  descend,  that 
they  might  go  and  publish  to  this  people,  assembled 
from  every  nation  under  heaven,  "  the  wonderful  things 
of  God,"  in  Latin,  in  Parthian,  Persian,  Chaldaic,  Cop- 
tic, Arabic  ;  was  it  not  needful  that  the  words  should 
be  given  them  ?  What  could  they  have  done  with  the 
thoughts,  without  the  words  ?  Nothing  ;  yet  Avith  the 
inspired  words,  they  could  convert  ihe  world  ! 

At  a  later  period,  when,  in  the  Corinthian  Church, 
the  saints  who  had  received  miraculous  powers,  spake 


THE    THOUGHTS    INSPIRED.  209 

in  the  midst  of  assembled  maltitudes,  in  strange  lan- 
guages, and  called  to  their  aid  another  faithful  brother 
to  whom  the  gift  of  interpretation  had  been  granted, 
that  their  unknown  language  might  be  received  and  un- 
derstood by  their  hearers,  was  it  not  equally  necessary 
that  the  words  and  all  the  sentences  should  be  wholly 
dictated  to  them  !*  when  all  the  Prophets,  after  having 
written  the  sacred  pages,  applied  themselves  to  meditate 
upon  them,  with  such  respect  and  care,  as  they  would 
have  shewed  to  the  oracles  of  a  strange  prophet ;  w^hen 
they  meditated  upon  them  night  and  day  ;  "  searching 
what  or  what  manner  of  time  the  Spirit  of  Christ  which 
was  in  them,  did  signify,  when  it  testified  beforehand 
the  sufTerings  of  Christ  and  the  glory  that  should  fol- 
low;'"! ^vas  it  not  also  necessary  that  all  the  words 
should  have  been  given  them  ?  When  Moses  describes 
the  creation  of  the  world  and  the  breaking  up  of  chaos  ; 
when  Solomon  describes  eternal  wisdom,  when  David 
repeats,  a  thousand  years  in  advance,  the  prayer  of  the 
Son  of  God  on  the  cross  ;  when  Daniel  gives  in  detail, 
and  without  a  full  comprehension  of  it  himself,  the  fu- 
ture and  far  off  destiny  of  the  world  and  of  the  church; 
and  when  at  last,  St.  John  continues  in  his  own  prophe- 
cy, the  revelations  of  the  prophet  Daniel,  must  not  the 
smallest  word  have  been  given  them  ?  And  in  reading 
them,  do  not  all  interpreters  acknowledge  that  the 
smallest  word  substituted  for  another,  the  tense  of  a 
verb  chosen  incorrectly,  or  a  particle  imprudently 
placed,  might  make  an  utter  perversion  of  the  truth  1 

We  must  then  determine,  that  since  so  large  a  portion 
of  the  Scriptures,  is  of  necessity  inspired,  even  in  the 
language  ;  the  theory  of  an  inspiration  of  thoughts,  and 

*  1  Cor.  xiv.  1 1  Pet.  i.  10,  11. 

18* 


210  JEVASIONS 

not  of  language,  is  supreniely  inconsistent.  There  are 
not  two  kinds  of  divine  words  in  the  Holy  Scriptures ; 
thove  are  not  two  kinds  of  oracles  of  God.  If  "  the 
holy  men  of  God  spake  as  they  were  moved  by  the 
^Spirit,"  all  the  sacred  letters  were  divinely  inspired,  and 
^that  which  is  divinely  inspired  in  the  holy  letters,  is 
"  ALL  THE  Scripture.  " 

But  these  last  reflections  carry  us  back  to  a  point,  at 
once  more  simple  and  more  important.  Let  us  examine 
it  carefully  ;  for  the  question  has  been  displaced.  It  has 
been  said  that  the  sacred  writers  were  inspired  of  God  ; 
and  ibhas  been  asked,  in  what  degree  were  they  so  in- 
spired ?  This  was  not  however  the  object  that  should 
have  been  sought. 

7  We  have  said,  that  our  investigation  refers  to  the 
book,  and  not  to  the  writers.  You  believe  that  God 
always  gave  them  the  thoughts,  and  not  always  the 
words  ;  but  on  the  other  hand,  the  Scripture  says  that 
God  gave  them  always  the  words,  and  not  always  the 
thoughts.  While  they  w^ere  writing,  God  could  inspire 
their  thoughts  with  more  or  less  life,  vividness,  purity, 
elevation ;  this  excites  my  love,  but  does  not  exercise 
my  faith.  This  is  to  me  the  all  important  fact ;  the 
Scriptures,  which  they  have  transmitted  to  me,  without 
comprehending  their  meaning,  at  least  without  ever 
comprehending  them  fully — the  Scriptures  are  inspired. 

St.  Paul  may  have  been  under  a  mistake,  when  ap- 
pearing before  the  council  of  priests,  and  not  recognis- 
ing the  high  priest  of  God,  he  dared  to  s^y  to  him  : 
"  God  shall  smite  thee,  thou  whited  wall."  It  matters 
little,  however,  since  I  know  that  when  he  wRrrEs  the 
WORD  OF  God,  it  is  Jesus  Christ  that  speaks  in  him.* 

•  2  Cor.  xiii.  3. 


THE   THOUGHTS    INSFIRED.  211 

St.  Peter  may  have  been  deceived  in  his  thoughts, 
when,  refusing  to  believe  that  God  could  send  him  to 
the  heathen,  he  remembered  not,  "  that  in  every  nation, 
those  that  Serve  God,  are  accepted  of  him."  It  is  possi- 
ble he  was  in  a  still  greater  error,  when  in  Antioch  he 
compelled  St.  Paul  to  withstand  him  face  to  face,  in  the 
presence  of  all,  because  he  was  to  be  blamed,  and 
walked  not  in  the  faith  of  the  Gospel.*  But  what  mat- 
ters this,  I  again  repeat,  at  least  in  connection  with  my 
faith  ?  It  cares  not  to  know  at  what  time,  or  in  what 
degree,  Paul,  John,  Mark,  James,  were  inspired  in 
their  minds,  or  sanctified  in  their  hearts.  What  inter- 
ests it,  before  all  other  considerations,  is,  to  know  that 
all  the  sacred  pages  were  divinely  inspired  ;  that  their 
written  words  were  the  words  of  God  ;  and  that  in  giv- 
ing them  to  us,  they  spake  "  not  in  the  words  which 
man's  wisdom,  teacheth,  but  which  the  Holy  Ghost 
teacheth."t  [ovx  iv  didixxioig  avdo(xmU'i]g  aocplag 
lb)'oig-^)  that  it  WAS  not  then  they  who  spake,  but 
the  Holy  Ghost  ;J  in  a  word,  that  God  hath  spoken 
BY  the  mouth  of  all  his  Holy  Prophets,  since  the 
world  began.  § 

The  sacred  writers  were  sometimes  inspired,  but  the 
Holy  Scriptures  always.  The  time,  the  extent,  the  de- 
gree, the  interruptions  of  the  inspiration  of  the  men  of 
God  are  not  for  us,  objects  of  faith  ;  but  this  is  an  object 
of  faith,  that  the  Scripture  is  divinely  inspired,  and  that 
the  whole  Scripture  is  divinely  inspired.  "  Not  a  tittle 
of  it  must  pass  away." 

There  is  doubtless  an  inspiration  of  the  thoughts,  and 

*  Gal.  ii.  14.  1 1  Cor.  ii.  13. 

X  Mark  xiii.  11,  §  Acts  iii.  21 ;  Luke  i.  70. 


212  EVASIONS. 

also  an  inspiration  of  the  words      The  first  makes  the 
Christian,  the  second  the  Prophet. 

A  true  Christian  is  inspired  in  his  thoughts  ;  "  the 
Spirit  reveals  to  him  the  dee^p  things  of  God.*  Flesh 
and  blood  have  not  revealed  to  him  the  counsels  of  God 
and  the  glories  of  Jesus  Christ ;  it  is  God  the  Father  ;t 
for  the  Holy  Spirit  guides  him  into  all  truth  ;J  and  no 
man  can  say,  Jesus  is  the  Lord  but  by  the  Holy  Ghost."  § 
Every  true  believer  is  then  inspired  in  his  thoughts,  but 
not  in  his  words.  He  is  a  Christian,  but  not  a  prophet. 
The  most  sacred  words  of  Cyprian,  of  Augustine,  of 
Bernard,  of  Luther,  Calvin,  Beza,  Leighton,  are  only 
the  words  of  men  on  truths  of  God ;  venerable,  precious, 
powerful  words  they  are,  without  doubt,  and  worthy  of 
our  attention,  on  account  of  the  wisdom  that  has  been 
given  them,  and  the  abundant  expressions  of  the  mind 
of  God  which  they  contain  ;  but  after  all,  they  are  hu- 
man words,  they  are  sermons,  not  revelations.  With 
the  Prophet,  it  is  far  otherwise.  He  may  have,  or  he 
may  not  have  the  thoughts  of  God  in  his  thoughts  ;  but 

so    LONG    AS    HE    SPEAKS    AS    A  PROPHET,  SO  long  will  hc 

have  the  words  of  God  on  his  lips. 

"  The  spirit  of  the  Lord  will  speak  by  him,  and  his 
word  will  be  on  his  tongue."  |j  He  will  be  the  mouth 
of  God  ;  whether  an  intelligent  or  an  unintelligent 
mouth,  whether  voluntary  or  involuntary;  it  matters 
little,  if  from  it  fall  the  oracles  of  God,  and  I  receive 
from  it  the  mJnd  of  my  God  clothed  in  the  language  of 
my  God. 

In  a  word,  one  may  be  a  Christian,  without  having 
on  his  lips  the  words  of  God  ;  and  one  can  be  a  pro- 

•  1  Cor.  ii.  10.  t  Matt.  xvi.  17.  t  .John  xvi.  13. 

§  1  Cor.  xii.  3.  11  2  Sam.  xxiii.  1,  2. 


THE   THOUGHTS   INSPIRED.  213 

phet,  without  having  either  in  his  heart  or  mind,  the 
thoughts  of  God  ;  but  one  cannot  be  a  Christian,  with- 
out having  in  his  heart  the  thoughts  of  God  ;  and  one 
cannot  be  a  prophet,  without  having  on  his  lips  the  very- 
words  of  God. 

We  shall  presently  establish  the  point,  that  in  the 
language  of  the  Bible,  a  prophet  is  a  man,  to  whose  lips 
God  conveys  for  a  time,  those  words  he  will  have  ut- 
tered on  earth.  Such  an  one  prophecies  only  by  inter- 
vals, "  as  the  spirit  gives  him  utterance."*  Like  Saul, 
he  might  be  a  prophet  but  twice  during  life  ;  or  like  his 
soldiers,  but  once.f  Then  might  he  pronounce  the 
words  of  God,  either  understanding  or  not  understarid- 
ing  them ;  often  even  without  knowing  beforehand  that 
/ie  u'ft.*. to  prophecy,  and  sometimes  even  without  it'is/i- 
ing  it. 

Daniel  tells  us  that  when  he  wrote  his  last  pages,  he 
did  not  himself  know  what  the  spirit  had  caused  him  to 
write.;]:  When  Caiaphas  uttered  prophetic  words,  "  he 
spake  not  of  himself  J  ^  He  had  the  loill.  but  neither  the 
knowledge  nor  understanding  of  what  God  made  him 
speak. §  When  Balaam  went  three  times  to  the  sum- 
mit of  the  rock,  to  curse  Israel ;  and  three  times,  words 
of  blessinof  proceeded  from  his  lips,  in  spite  of  himself 
'•  because  the  most  High  had  met  him,  and  put  these 
words  in  his  mouth  ;"||  he  had  the  consciousness  of  it. 
but  he  had  neither  the  full  knowledge  of  the  meaning 
of  the  words,  nor  a  cordial  icill  in  uttering  them.  When 
the  armed  men  of  Saul  had  sought  David  in  Rama,  and 
the  Holy  Spirit  had  so  come  upon  them,  that  they  like- 
wise prophesied  ;  and  w^hen  Saul  thrice  sent  others  of 

*  Acts  ii.  4.  1 1  Sam.  x.  xix.  J  Dan.  xii.  8,  9. 

§  John  xi.  51.  II  Num.  .\xiii.  16, 


214  EVASIONS. 

them,  who  also  thrice  prophesied,  and  when  the  wicked 
Saul  repaired  thither  himself,  even  to  the  great  well  on 
his  way  to  Najoth  ;  and  God  (to  show  forth  his  power, 
and  the  better  to  manifest  to  us  what  a  prophet  is  and 
what  his  word  is ;)  caused  his  Holy  Spirit  to  come  upon 
tiis  unbelieving  man ;  when  he  continued  thus  on  his 
way,  prophesying ;  when  the  word  of  God  was  on  those 
profane  lips,  and  he  prophesied  day  and  night  before 
Samuel,  '•  what  then  happened  to  the  Son  of  Kish  ?"* — 
"  Was  Saul  indeed  then  among  the  prophets  ?" — yes  ; — 
and  Saul  had  also  the  consciousness  of  his  state,  and  of 
the  part  he  acted  as  prophet ;  but  he  had  neither  fore- 
seen it  nor  loilled  it,  nor  probably  had  he,  a  full  under- 
standing of  what  he  uttered. 

When  the  old  prophet  was  seated  amicably  at  table 
with  the  man  of  God,  whom  he  had  just  turned  from 
his  path,  by  an  unbelieving  and  carnal  good-will ;  and 
when  on  a  sudden,  by  a  power  from  above,  loud  and 
menacing  words  proceeded  from  his  lips  against  his  im- 
prudent and  guilty  host;!  he  prophecied  Avith  a  con- 
sciousness  of  what  he  did,  but  he  prophecied  without 
willing  it.  What  do  I  say  1  Did  not  God  utter  his 
voice  in  the  air,  before  Moses  and  all  the  people  on 
Mount  Sinai?  Has  he  not  caused  it  to  be  heard  on  the 
pillow  of  a  child,  in  the  tabernacle  of  Shiloh  ;  in  the 
ears  of  the  three  Apostles  and  the  two  saints  recalled 
from  the  invisible  world,  upon  Mount  Tabor  ;  in  the 
ears  of  John  the  Baptist  and  all  the  people  on  the  oanks 
of  the  Jordan?  Let  it  then  be  well  understood,  these 
are  the  hoi?/  loritings  [tu  ienn  yodujuaTu  ,-)  aH  thai  is 
written,  both  the  phrases  and  the  words  are  divinely  in- 
spired ;  they  are  dsonvEvgroi.     We  inquire  then  con- 

•  I  Sam.  xix.  23,  24.  1 1  Kings,  xiii.  21. 


THE    THOUGHTS   INSPIRED.  215 

cerning  the  word,  and  not  the  men  who  have  written  it. 
Their  state  is  comparatively  unimportant  in  this  inves- 
tigation. The  Spirit  could  associate  in  a  greater  or  less 
degree,  their  individuality,  their  consciousness,  their 
memories,  their  affections  with  what  he  made  them  say; 
and  you  are  in  no  wise  obliged  to  know  any  thing  of 
this  ;  but  that  which  is  most  needful  for  you  to  know  is, 
as  St.  Peter  hath  it,  "  that  no  rROPiiETic  writing  came 
by  the  tvill  of  man,  but  that  holy  men  of  God  spake  as 
they  were  moved  by  the  Holi/  GhostP*  So  at  the  sup- 
per of  Belshazzar,  they  were  little  anxious  to  know 
what  was  passing  in  the  fingers  of  that  terrible  hand 
projected  from  the  v/all  by  the  side  of  the  chandelier  ; 
while  on  the  contrary,  every  thought  of  the  guests  was 
directed  to  the  words  that  it  traced  on  the  plaistering  of 
the  wall :  "  Mene,  Me?ie,  Tekel  Upharsin ;"  because 
they  v.'ell  knew  that  these  words  were  of  God ;  so  it 
matters  little  to  you,  as  an  object  of  faith,  to  know  what 
Avas  passing  in  the  mind  of  Mark,  of  Luke,  of  John,  and 
of  Matthew,  while  they  were  writing  the  scroll  of  the 
Gospels.  Rather  let  every  look  be  turned  to  those 
words  w\iich  they  have  written,  because  you  know  that 
these  words  are  of  God.  Whether  the  prophet  be  holy 
as  Moses,  or  wise  as  Daniel,  hostile  to  his  God  as  Caia- 
phas,  ignorant  of  God  when  he  speaks  to  men,  as  the 
prophets  of  Corinth,  unholy  as  Balaam  ;  what  do  I  say  ? 
insensible  as  the  hand  on  the  wall  of  the  palace  in 
Babylon  ;  without  form,  without  body,  without  soul,  as 
the  open  air  in  which  was  heard  the  voice  of  God  on 
Sinai,  on  the  banks  of  the  Jordan,  or  on  Tabor — little 
matters  it,  yet  again  we  say,  except  in  those  cases  when 
even  their  personality  might  form  an  essential  part  of 

2  Pet.  i,  21. 


216  EVASIONS. 

their   revelation.     Thy   thought,  oh!    my   God;    thy 
thought  and  thy  words,  they  concern  me. 

SECTION  II. 

Should  the  Histoncal  Books  be  excluded  from  the  Inspired 
Portions  of  the  Bible  ? 

"We  admit,"  it  is  said,  "that  inspiration  may  have  reached 
even  to  the  choice  of  expressions,  wherever  this  miraculous  work 
was  necessary  ;  to  state  doctrines,  for  instance,  to  declare  a  history 
of  the  past  more  ancient  than  the  birth  of  the  mountains,  or  to 
announce  a  future  which  none  but  God  can  know.  But  should 
we  go  so  far  as  to  maintain  that  contemporary  men  had  need  of 
the  Holy  Spirit,  for  stating  facts  of  which  they  themselves  had 
been  witnesses,  or  which  they  had  heard  others  relate  ;  to  tell  us. 
for  example,  of  the  humble  marriage  of  Ruth  in  the  village  of  Beth- 
lehem, or  the  emotions  of  Esther  in  the  palace  of  Shushan,  or  the 
catalogue  of  the  Kings  of  Israel  and  of  Judah,  their  reigns,  their 
lives,  their  deaths,  their  genealogies  7  Luke,  for  example,  who 
from  Troas,  had  accompanied  the  Apostle  to  .Terusalem,  to  Caesarea. 
to  the  island  of  Malta,  and  even  to  Rome  :  had  he  not  recollections 
enough  to  tell  us  how  Paul  was  seized  in  the  portico  of  the  tem- 
ple, how  his  nephew  warned  him  in  the  fortress,  of  the  conspirarr 
of  forty  Jews ;  how  the  captain  led  the  lad  to  the  Tribune,  and 
how  the  Tribune  taking  him  by  the  hand,  led  him  aside  an  J  asked 
him  what  he  knew  ?  Did  he  then  need  for  facts  so  simple,  and 
so  familiar  to  him,  a  continual  intervention  of  power  from  above  ' 
We  think  not ;  and  we  maintain,  that  it  is  not  necessary,  nor  even 
rea.«onable  to  believe,  that  all  the  historical  jiassages  of  the  New 
Testament  are  inspired." 

To  such  objections,  our  first  answer  is  always  very 
simple  ;  "  all  Scripture  is  given  by  inspiration  of  God  ;" 
"thou  hast  known,  Timothy,  the  holy  books;  but,  all 
these  holy  books  are  given  by  the  breath  of  God."* 
We  have  not  heard  the  Holy  Spirit  make  a  single  ex- 
ception any  where  to  these  declarations  ;  and  we  do  not 

•  2  Tim.  iii.  14, 16. 


THE   IIISTOE.ICAL    BOOKS    PROPHETICAL.  217 

acknowledge  in  any  man,  nor  in  any  angel,  the  right 
of  hazarding  one. 

But  still  further.  If  it  were  permitted  to  put  one 
book  of  God  before  another ;  if  we  must  select  in  the 
firmament  of  the  Scriptures,  the  more  glorious  constel- 
lations and  stars  of  the  first  magnitude,  we  should  cer- 
tainly give  the  preference  to  the  historical  books.  In 
fact : 

1.  It  is  to  the  historical  books,  that  the  most  brilliant 
and  the  most  respectful  testimony  is  rendered  by  the 
prophets  in  the  Old  Testament,  and  by  the  apostles  in 
the  New.  Which  book  of  the  Old  Testament  is  holier 
than  the  Pentateuch  ;  and  what  is  grander  in  the  New, 
than  the  four  Gospels  !  Is  it  not  of  the  historical  books 
alone  that  it  is  written  ;  "  the  law  of  the  Lord  is  perfect, 
converting  the  soul ;  the  testimonies  of  the  Lord  are 
sure,  making  wise  the  simple  ;  they  are  pure,  more  to 
be  desired  than  gold  ;  the  words  of  the  Lord  are  pure 
words,  as  silver  tried  in  the  furnace,  seven  times  refined? 
Happy  then  is  he,  who  takes  pleasure  in  them  and  med- 
itates therein  night  and  day."* 

2.  Remark,  too,  with  what  respect  our  Lord  himself 
quotes  them  ;  and  how,  in  quoting  them,  he  is  pleased 
to  show  that  divine  decrees  lie  couched  in  their  minutest 
details,  and  sometimes  even  in  the  employment  of  a  sin- 
gle word. 

3.  The  histories  of  the  Bible  have  not  been  given. 
merely  to  transmit  to  future  ages  the  memory  of  events 
already  past;  they  are  presented  to  the  Church  of  all 
ages,  to  exhibit  to  her  the  character  of  God  by  facts ; 
they  are  there  like  a  mirror  of  providence  and  of  grace  ; 
they  are  destined  to  reveal  to  her  the  thoughts  of  God, 

•  Psalm  cxix.  95—129. 

19 


218  EVASIONS. 

the  designs  of  God,  the  invisible  things  of  God,  his 
heaven,  his  glory,  his  angels,  and  those  mysteries  which 
"  the  angels  desire  to  look  into;'*  But  all  that  requires 
the  most  entire  Theopneusty. 

,  4.  But  still  further :  the  historical  Scriptures  are 
given  to  reveal  to  us  the  deep  things  of  man.  It  has 
l)een  said  of  the  word  of  God.  that  "  it  is  quick  and 
powerful,  and  sharper  than  any  two-edged  sword,  pierc- 
ing even  to  the  dividing  asunder  of  the  soul  and  of  the 
spirit,  and  of  the  joints  and  marrow,  and  is  a  discerner 
of  the  thoughts  and  intents  of  the  heart."  That  is  true 
of  the  written  woid,  as  of  the  personal  word  of  God, 
because  the  one  is  the  lano-uaj^e  of  the  other  ;  but  it  is 
emphatically  true  of  the  historical  word.  Do  you  not 
see  that  this  word,  in  its  narrations,  is  a  two-edged 
sword,  and  that  it  searches  the  conscience  ?  And  just 
as  it  describes  to  you  that  which  took  place  on  our 
globe  in  the  days  of  chaos,  when  the  Holy  Spirit  moved 
on  the  face  of  the  deep  ;  so  it  still  tells  you  the  things 
which  pass  in  the  depths  of  the  human  heart,  the  mys- 
teries of  the  invisible  world,  and  the  secret  interference 
of  the  angels  of  God  in  the  affairs  of  men  ;  it  reveals  to 
you  secret  motives,  hidden  faults,  and  human  thoughts, 
which,  without  it,  had  not  been  known  until  that  last  day, 
in  whose  light  every  thing  shall  be  revealed.  Is  it  thus 
that  men  relate  events  1 

5.  The  historical  Scriptures  had  need,  moreover,  of 
the  most  entire  theopneusty,  to  relate  to  us  without 
error,  the  mysterious  intervention  of  angels  in  the  af- 
fairs of  the  world,  of  the  church  and  of  heaven. — Can 
there  be  a  more  delicate,  new  or  difficult  subject  to  pre- 
sent properly? — These  pure  and  ardent  creatures,  so 

*  1  Pet.  i.  li.'. 


THE    HISTORICAL    BOOKS    PROPHETICAL.  219 

humble  and  so  sublime,  whose  existence  the  Bible 
alone  has  revealed,  differ  as  much  from  men  as  the 
heavens  from  the  earth.  Nothing  resembling  the  an- 
gels was  ever  imagined  by  any  people,  by  their  poets 
nor  their  sages.  No ;  the  very  suspicion  of  their  na- 
ture  and  existence  cannot  be  found. — It  is  very  evident 
then,  that  it  would  have  been  impossible,  without  a  con- 
stant operation  of  God,  that  the  narratives  of  the  Bible, 
in  treating  such  a  subject,  could  have  avoided  betraying 
the  narrowness  of  our  conceptions  ;  and  that  the  sacred 
historians  should  not  frequently  have  exaggerated  on 
one  side  or  the  other,  either  in  giving  them  attributes 
too  much  like  man's  or  too  much  like  those  of  God. 
All  nations  have  delighted  in  imagining  invisible  beings, 
inhabiting  the  celestial  regions,  and  endowed  with  every 
excellence  which  man  admires.  But  all  their  concep- 
tions have  been  grovelling,  puerile,  and  vulgar,  com- 
pared with  the  angels  of  the  Bible.  How  terrestrial, 
passionate,  selfish,  impure  and  often  odious  are  these 
fantasies  ! — Behold  the  gods,  the  demi-gods,  and  the 
whole  Olympus  of  the  ancients  ;  behold  the  fairies,  the 
genii  and  the  sylphs  of  the  moderns  ;  behold  even  the 
angels  of  the  Bible  disfigured  in  the  writings  of  men, 
in  the  apocrj-pha  of  Enoch,  for  instance,  in  many  of  the 
mthers,  in  the  legends  of  Rome,  and  even  the  more  re- 
cent creations  of  the  French  poets  ;  winged  passions, 
devout  puerilities,  sacrilegious  idols,  immortal  egotists, 
celestial  wickednesses,  deified  impurities  I — But  study 
the  angels  of  the  Scriptures  :  not  only  is  every  thing 
there  grand,  holy  and  v/orthy  of  God  :  not  only  is  that 
character  at  once  ardent  and  sublime,  compassionate 
and  majestic,  con.stantly  suggested  by  their  names,  their 
attributes,  their   employments,   their   residences,   their 


220  EVASIONS. 

songs,  their  contemplations  of  the  depths  of  redemption 
and  the  ineffable  joys  of  their  charity  ;  but  that  which 
chiefly  strikes  us,  is  the  perfect  harmony  of  the  whole  : 
it  is  that  all  their  features  harmonise,  and  that  all  these 
attributes  make  a  beautiful,  symmetrical  and  perfect 
whole. 

In  a  word,  all  this  doctrine,  sustained  from  one  end 
of  the  Scriptures  to  the  other,  during  fifteen  centuries, 
presents  to  us  a  unity  which  alone  vvould  convince  of 
the  reality  of  its  object,  but  which  also  carries  the  most 
striking  evidence  of  their  entire  theopneusty. 

Whilst  all  the  mythologies  speak  of  the  inhabitants 
of  the  moon  and  the  planets,  the  Bible  has  not  one 
word  about  them  ;  it  says  nothing  of  the  second  hea- 
ven ;  but  it  describes  with  as  much  fulness  as  precision 
the  sublime  inhabitants  of  the  third  heaven,  or  the  hea- 
ven of  heavens. — This  subject  recurs  in  them  constantly, 
and  under  the  most  varied  forms. — Their  descriptions 
of  angels  are  numerous,  never  tedious,  full  of  details, 
independent,  too,  of  each  other.  We  there  see  them  in 
every  situation  in  heaven  and  on  the  earth,  before  God 
and  with  men,  ministers  noAv  of  mercy  now  of  vengeance, 
plunged  in  the  rays  of  divine  glory,  standing  before  God, 
adoring  him  night  and  day  ;  but  also  employed  in  the 
service  of  the  most  humble  saints,  assisting  them  in  their 
distresses,  their  journeys,  their  prisons,  their  dying-bed  ; 
and  finally  coming  at  the  last  day  upon  the  clouds  of  hea- 
ven, with  the  Son  of  Man,  to  separate  all  the  wicked 
from  his  kingdom,  and  to  gather  his  elect  from  the  four 
winds. 

And  who  were  these  historians  of  the  angels  ?  Let 
it  not  be  forgotten  ;  some  were  shepherds  ;  some  kings, 
or  soldiers,  or  priests,  or  fishermen,  or  taxgathcrers ; 


THE    HISTORICAL    BOOKS    PROPHETICAL.  221 

some,  writing  in  the  days  of  Hercules,  of  Jason  and  the 
Argonauts,  three  hundred  years  before  the  Trojan  war  ; 
others,  in  the  age  of  Seneca,  Tacitus  and  Juvenal.  And 
we  see  no  variation  in  their  descriptions.  Unlike  men, 
they  are  always  like  themselves.  We  are  polluted, 
they  are  perfect;  we  are  selfish,  they  burn  with  love; 
we  are  haughty,  they  are  gentle.  We  are  vain  and 
•proud  in  a  body  which  the  worms  shall  consume,  they  are 
humble  in  their  glory  and  immortality.  Sometimes  we 
would  worship  them  ;  "  See  thou  do  it  not,"  they  ex- 
claim, "  for  I  am  thy  fellow-servant."*  We  are  troubled 
with  lusts,  they  are  fervent  in  spirit ;  they  neither  marry 
nor  are  given  in  marriage,  because  they  can  never  die.f 
We  are  unfeeling,  they  are  compassionate  ;  we  suffer 
poor  Lazarus  to  lie  groaning  and  famished  at  our  gates, 
and  our  dogs  lick  their  sores  ;  but  they  come  to  carry 
his  spirit  to  Abraham's  bosom  ;|  they  lift  their  shouts 
of  joy  when  a  sinner  is  converted  ;  and  yet,  Jesus  says, 
the  angels  of  one  of  these  little  ones  continually  behold 
the  face  of  God  in  heaven. § — Behold  the  angel  of  all 
the  Scriptures. 

Now,  let  each  one  ask  himself  how,  without  a  con- 
stant theopneusty  of  all  the  historical  books,  it  could 
happen  that  through  so  many  ages  not  one  of  these 
authors  has  ever  suffered  to  escape  him  one  word  con- 
cerning the  angels,  either  too  respectful,  like  the  Romish 
liturgies,  or  too  low,  after  the  manner  of  many  of  the 
fathers  ;  and  how,  under  their  pens,  not  one  discordant 
feature  has  marred  the  perfect  harmony  of  this  inim- 
itable creature,  nor  derogated  from  the  ever  amiable 
dignity  of  this  sublime  creation. 

*  Rev.  xxii.  9.  +  Luke  xx.  36. 

t  Luke  xvi.  22.  §  Matt,  xviii.  10 

19* 


222  EVASIONS. 

Yet  once  more,  this  unit}-,  this  purity,  this  perfec- 
tion do  not  come  from  man  ;  it  is  of  God  !  and  "we 
should  recognize  that  here  as  elsewhere  it  was  neces- 
sary that  the  Holy  Spirit  should  himself  watch  over 
the  entire  narrative  of  the  historians,  and  himself  be  the 
guarantee  for  their  minutest  expressions. 

6.  But  this  is  not  all.  See  again  how,  even  without 
the  knowledge  of  the  authors  themselves,  the  Bible  his- 
tories are  full  of  the  future.  While  relating  to  us  past 
events,  "  they  are  types  for  us  Avho  should  live  in  the 
latter  times.'"*  They  relate,  it  is  true,  national  or  do- 
mestic scenes  ;  but,  whilst  they  are  relating,  Jesus 
Christ  is  there  incessantly  and  prophetically  portrayed 
in  all  his  manifestations  and  in  all  his  characters.  See 
the  history  of  Adam,  of  Noah,  of  Abraham,  of  Isaac, 
of  Joseph,  of  Moses,  of  the  immolated  Lamb,  of  the  de- 
liverance from  Egypt,  of  the  column  of  fire,  of  the 
manna,  of  the  Rock,  which  was  Christ.f  of  the  goat 
Azazel.  of  all  the  sacrifices,  of  Joshua,  of  David,  of  Sol- 
omon, of  Jonah,  of  Zerubbabel.  The  entire  history 
must  be  adduced,  to  render  justice  to  this  truth.  Read 
again,  in  order  to  appreciate  it,  the  pages  of  St.  Paul 
upon  Hagar,  Sarah,  Aaron,  or  Melchisedec. 

A  little  reflection  will  excite  our  admiration  at  the  con- 
stimt  presence  and  power  of  inspiration  in  every  part  of 
these  Scriptures;  and  it  will  convince  us  that  if  there 
are  any  pig^'S  of  the  Bible  which  needed  to  be  inspired 
in  every  line  and  every  word,  they  are  those  of  the  his- 
torical books.  They  preach,  they  reveal,  they  teach, 
they  legislate,  they  prophesy. 

bo  not,  then,  compare  them  to  other  histories  ;  they 
have  altog(  ther  another  end,  totally  another  rank. 

•  1  Cor.  X.  6-11.  tlCor.  X.  4. 


THE    HISTORICAL    BOOKS    PROPHETICAL.  223 

This  plennry  inspiration  was  indispensable  to  them, 
that  they  might  state,  without  any  error,  facts  beyond 
the  range  of  human  knowledge.  The}'-  needed  it,  in 
describing  the  creation  of  the  universe,  the  breaking  up 
of  chaos,  the  birth  of  light,  the  establishing  of  mountains, 
the  ministration  of  angels,  the  secret  counsels  of  God* 
the  thoughts  of  the  human  heart  and  its  unknown  de-' 
fects.  They  needed  it  when  they  prefigured  Christ  by 
a  thousand  types,  unperceived  by  the  writers  themselves  ; 
they  needed  it  for  exhibiting  thus,  even  in  their  narra- 
tions of  the  past,  the  characteristic  features  of  the  Mes- 
siah, his  sufferings,  his  death,  and  the  glories  which 
were  to  follow.  They  needed  it  to  speak  suitably  even 
of  the  events  which  were  known  to  them  ;  to  suppress 
some,  to  present  others,  to  distinguish  between  them,  to 
judge  them;  and  thus  to  show,  in  them,  the  mind  of 
God.  Tliey  needed  it,  to  describe  with  accuracy,  and 
in  the  precise  measure  of  the  mind  of  God  and  of  the 
Church's  future  necessity,  the  national  or  domestic 
scenes,  which  were  to  convey  in  themselves  the  t3^pes 
of  redemption,  to  prefigure  the  latter  days,  and  to  pos- 
sess a  great  significancy,  thousands  of  years  after  their 
occurrence.  They  needed  it  for  the  degree  of  their 
communicativeness,  for  that  of  their  reserve,  for  the  dis- 
creet employment  of  their  expressions,  and  for  that  ad- 
mirable circumspection  which  they  have  been  enabled 
uniformly  to  observe. 

7.  We  could  wish  we  had  time  here  to  speak  of  their 
dramatic  power  (if  such  an  expression  may  be  allowed) 
— of  that  divine  and  undefinable  power — that  mysterious 
and  ever  fresh  attractiveness  which  belongs  to  all  their 
narratives,  which  captivates  the  mind  in  every  clime  : 
in  which,  throughout  life,   we  find,  as  in  the  scenes 


224  EVASIONS. 

of  nature,  a  charm  always  new  ;  and  which,  after  having 
arrested  and  engaged  our  affections  in  early  youth,  have 
a  still  stronger  hold  upon  the  heart,  when  hoary  years 
find  us  on  the  verge  of  the  tomb.  There  must  surely  bo 
something  super-human  in  the  very  humanity  of  terms 
so  familiar  and  so  artless.  Men  know  not  how  to  write 
thus.  Who  will  tell  us  the  secret  of  this  cnptivnting 
power  ?  Where  is  it  to  be  found  ?  We  should  find  it  dif- 
ficult to  explain,  perhaps :  it  seems  to  consist  in  an  inefili- 
ble  blending  of  simplicity  and  depth,  of  what  is  unexpect- 
ed and  what  is  natural,  of  local  scenes  and  spiritual  reve- 
lations :  it  is,  because  these  recitals  are  at  once  rapid  and 
natural ;  because  they  present  details,  yet  are  concise  ;  it 
is,  in  the  harmony  and  truth  of  the  sentiments ;  it  is  man,  it 
is  nature,  in  unaflected  reality.  In  a  word,  we  must  be  sen- 
sible (even  withoutbeingabletoaccountforthesensation,) 
that  he  who  speaks  here,  knows  all  the  most  secret  and 
intimate  chords  of  the  human  heart,  and  touches  them  at 
will,  with  a  hand  light  and  yet  powerful,  in  the  exact  de- 
gree which  his  own  wisdom  dictates.  Reperuse  the  scenes 
of  Ruth  and  Boaz  in  the  fields  of  Bethlehem,  those  of 
Abraham  and  Isaac  on  Mount  Moriah,  of  David  and  Jona- 
than, of  Elijah  and  Elisha,  of  Naaman  the  Syrian,  of  the 
widow  of  Sarepta,  of  the  Shunamite  ;  and  far  above  all 
these,  of  the  life  and  death  of  the  Son  of  Man :  afterwards 
search  through  the  whole  range  of  human  writings, 
and  see  if  you  can  discover  any  thing  at  all  comparable. 
Read,  if  you  will,  the  four  Vedahes,  or  the  volumi- 
nous collection  of  Pautbier,  the  sacred  books  of  the 
East,  Confucius,  Manou,  Mohammed  ;*  and  see,  if  in 


*  The  Sncreil  Books  of  the  East,  (includinjr  ihe  Chou-Kiiig,  or  Rook  par 
excellence,  the  Scii-Chou,  or  the  four  books  of  ('onfuriiis  anJ  his  disci- 
ples o!i  nioriils;  Uieliiws  of  Muiioii,  first  legishitor  of  IikUh,  tc.) 


THE    HISTORICAL    BOOKS    PROPHETICAL.  225 

any  part  of  them  you  can  find  eight  lines,  which  can  be 
compared  with  the  incomparable  narrations  of  Scripture. 
But  for  the  fear  of  too  extensive  dissertation,  we  could 
have  wished  to  have  entered  into  some  comparisons,  and 
to  have  taken  alternately  the  history  of  similar  facts 
from  the  Old  Testament  and  from  the  Koran  :  from  the 
New  Testament  and  from  the  Pseudo-gospels  ;  from 
the  patriarchal  scenes  of  Genesis,  and  from  those  which 
men  have  depicted  wherever  they  have  become  histo- 
rians. Re-peruse,  for  instance,  in  Moses,  the  life  of 
Joseph;  his  infancy,  his  temptation,  his  sorrows,  down 
to  that  inimitable  scene  of  the  eleven  children  of  Jacob 
appearing  before  their  brother ;  to  the  '■  God  be  gra- 
cious unto  thee,  my  son^^  (xliii.  29,)  and  to  the  "  /  Jo- 
stfK''  (CIGI''  ^^5*^')  which  at  no  age  can  be  re-perused 
without  new  emotions :  afterwards,  take  up  this  same 
history  in  Mohammed  ;  read  his  twelfth  chapter,  enti- 
tled '•  Joseph,"  extending  to  the  number  of  one  hundred 
and  eleven  verses,  and  beginning  thus  : — "  We  have 
caused  this  book  to  come  down  from  heaven  in  the  Arab 
language,  in  order  that  it  may  be  understood ;  and  we 
are  going  to  relate  the  most  beautiful  history  which  we 
have  revealed  to  thee  in  this  Koran."  Oh  no !  It 
must  be  said  of  the  historical  Scriptures,  even  in  this 
respect,  that  never  has  man,  either  before  or  since,  rela- 
ted events  as  they  relate  them. 

8.  Probably  their  divine  conciseness  has  not  been 
sufficiently  remarked  nor  admired.  If  you  would  ap- 
preciate  the  Scriptures  in  this  respect,  compare  them 
with  the  biographies  written  by  men,  or  with  the  codes 
of  doctrines  which  they  give  us,  when  they  are  unin- 
spired. See,  for  example,  the  modern  Jewish  or  the 
Latin  Church.     Whilst  the  former  have  identified  their 


226  EVASIONS. 

two  Talmuds  with  the  Scriptures,  by  ascribing  to  them 
the  same  divine  authority ;  the  one  of  which,  (that  of 
Jerusalem,)  makes  a  large  folio  volume  ;  and  the  other, 
(that  of  Babylon.)  which  is  the  most  popular,  and  which 
all  their  teachers  are  required  to  study,  is  a  work  of 
twelve  folio  volumes  ;*  and  whilst  the  Romish  Church, 
in  her  Council  of  Trent,  has  declared  that  "  she  receives 
with  the  same  affection  and  reverence  which  she  gives 
the  Scriptures,  her  traditions  concerning  faith  and  prac- 
tice ;"  that  is  to  say,  the  immense  repository  of  her  sy- 
nodical  acts,  of  her  decretals,  of  her  bulls,  of  her  canons, 
and  of  the  writings  of  the  holy  Fathers  ;t — Compare 
all  this  with  what  the  Holy  Spirit  has  done  in  the 
Bible ;  and  admire  there  the  celestial  wisdom  of  its  in- 
imitable brevity. 

Who  of  us  having  been,  for  three  years  and  a  half, 
the  constant  witness,  the  intimate  friend,  of  such  a  man 
as  Jesus  Christ,  could  have  put,  in  sixteen  or  twenty 
short  chapters,  or  in  eight  hundred  lines,  the  history  of 
all  that  life,  of  his  birth,  of  his  youth,  of  his  miracles, 
of  his  ministry,  of  his  preachings,  of  his  sufferings,  of 
his  death,  of  his  resurrection,  and  of  his  ascension  into 
the  heavens  ?  Who  of  us  could  have  recounted  so 
much  goodness,  without  a  reflection  ;  so  many  sublime 
thoughts,  without  an  emphasis;  so  many  sufferings, 
without  complaints ;  so  much  injustice,  without  bitter- 
ness ;  so  many  innocent  infirmities  of  the  master,  or  so 
many  culpable  infirmities  of  the  disciples,  without  the 


'  The  last  edition  of  AmsterdaiTi.  Maimonides  has  made  a  lenrned  ex- 
tract from  it  ill  his  Yad  Tlachazaka.  See  Prideaux'  Hist,  of  the  Jews. 
Amsterdam,  vnl.  ii.  page  130. 

t  ConiKil  of  Ti*nt,  session  4,  first  and  second  decrees,  published,  Ap. 
•28th,  ir)4G.  — Hellannine  de  rerhn  Dei.  lib.  4,  cap.  3,  5,  6. — Colon,  lib.  ii.  cap. 
24,  34,  35 — Buile,  traitc  I.  l)u  Perron  against  Silenus. 


THE   HISTORICAL    BOOKS    PROPHETICAL.  227 

leact  concealtnent ;  so  much  ingratitude  in  their  bjse 
abandonment  of  him,  so  much  resistance,  so  much 
hardness  of  heart,  without  an  apology  and  without  a 
comment  ?  Is  it  thus  that  men  relate  events  or  describe 
character? 

Who  of  us,  again,  could  have  distinguished  that 
which  must  be  cursorily  presented,  from  that  which 
must  be  related  in  detail  ?  Who  of  us,  for  instance, 
would  have  thought  that  the  whole  creation  of  the 
world  must  be  told  in  one  chapter  of  thirty-one  verses  ; 
then  the  trial,  the  fall  and  condemnation  of  our  race  in 
another  chapter  of  twenty-four  verses  ;  whilst  so  many 
chapters  and  pages  must  be  devoted  to  the  construction 
of  the  Tabernacle  and  its  furniture,  because  in  it  was 
contained  for  future  ages,  a  continual  and  typical  pic- 
ture of  Jesus  Christ  and  his  redemption?  Who  of  us, 
for  the  same  reason,  would  have  employed  the  fifth 
part  of  Genesis  in  relating  the  history  of  only  one  of 
Jacob's  twelve  sons,  whilst  two  chapters  would  have 
appeared  to  him  sufficient  to  make  nearly  seventeen 
hundred  years,  from  the  fall  of  Adam  to  the  deluge  ? 
Who  among  ourselves  would  have  thought  of  men- 
tioning only  four  women  (and  such  women!)  in  the 
forty-two  generations  of  the  genealogy  of  Jesus  Christ, 
and  have  told  of  the  incestuous  Tatnar,  the  impure  Ra- 
hab,  of  Ruth  the  Moabitess,  and  the  adulterous  wife  of 
the  injured  Uriah,  without  a  single  accompanying  re- 
flection ?  Who  of  us,  after  having  shared  for  ten 
years  in  the  labors  of  St.  Paul,  his  dangers,  his  impris- 
onments, his  preachings  and  his  prophetic  gifts,  could 
have  related  twenty-two  years  of  such  a  life,  without 
saying  one  word  of  himself,  and  with(tt]t  showing  to 
other  men,  except  by  the  mere  change  of  the  personal 


228  EVASIONS. 

prcnoun,*  that  from  Troas  to  Jerusalem  and  Caesarea, 
and  that  from  Jerusalem  and  Csesarea,  even  to  Malta 
and  to  Rome,  he  had  been  his  suffering  companion, 
faithful  and  indefatigable?  To  discover  who  this  was, 
we  must  learn  from  Paul,  who,  in  his  last  prison  wrote 
to  Timothy  ;  "  in  my  first  defence,  no  man  stood  by  me, 
all  forsook  me  ;  Luke  alone  was  with  me."t  Holy 
and  celestial  reserve  ;  humble  and  noble  silence  !  The 
Divine  Spirit  alone  could  have  taught  him  ! 

Where  would  you  f]nd,amongalhheuninspiredhisto- 
rians,  a  man  who  could  have  written  like  St.  Luke,  the 
Acts  of  the  Apostles  ;  who  could  have  related  in  thirty 
pages,  the  ecclesiastical  history  of  thirty  of  the  most 
brilliant  years  of  Christianity,  from  the  ascension  of  the 
Son  of  Man  above  the  clouds  of  heaven,  to  the  impris- 
onment of  St.  Paul  in  the  capital  of  the  Roman  world? 
Incompara'  ]e  history  ;  at  once  short  and  grand  !  What 
do  we  not  find  there  ? — preachings  to  the  Jews,  to  the 
Greeks,  before  the  tribunals,  before  the  Areopagus,  and 
before  the  Sanhedrim,  in  public  places  and  before  a  pro- 
consul, before  synagogues  and  before  kings  ;  admirable 
descriptions  of  the  primitive  church  ;  miraculous  and 
dramatic  scenes  in  its  bosom  ;  interventions  of  angels  to 
deliver,  to  warn  and  to  punish  ;  controversies  and  divi- 
sions in  Christian  assemblies;  new  institutions  in  the 
church  ;  the  history  of  her  first  council  and  its  synodical 
epistle;  commentaries  on  the  Scriptures;  accounts  of 
heresii  s ;  judgments  of  God,  solemn  and  terrible ;  ap- 
paritions of  the  Lord,  by  the  way,  in  the  temple  and  in 
the  prison  ,  detailed  conversions,  often  miraculous, 
and  singuhrly  varied  ;  that  of  ^neas,  that  of  the  Eu- 
nuch, and  that  of  the  captain  Cornelius,  that  of  the  Ro- 

•  Acts  xvi.  10.  t  2  Tim.  iv.  16,  11. 


THE   HISTORICAL    BOOKS   PROPHETICAL.  229 

man  jailor,  that  of  the  pro-consul,  that  of  Lydia,  that  of 
ApoUos,  that  of  a  numerous  people  at  Jerusalem  ;  with- 
out speaking  of  those  that  were  merely  commenced,  as 
in  the  emotions  of  King  Agrippa,  in  the  troubles  of 
Festus,  in  the  professions  of  Simon  of  Samaria,  in  the 
anguish  of  Pilate's  wife,  in  the  terrors  of  Felix,  in  the 
kindness  of  the  captain  Julius.  In  it  we  also  find  mis- 
sionary journeys,  diverse  solutions  of  cases  of  con- 
science :  permanent  divisions  upon  external  things,  be- 
tween Christians  of  different  classes  ;  mutual  prejudices, 
disputes  between  brethren  and  between  apostles  ;  bursts 
of  passion  ;  explanations,  and  at  the  same  time,  triumph 
of  the  spirit  of  charity  over  obstacles;  communications 
from  one  military  officer  to  another,  fiom  pro-consul  to 
pro-consul ;  resurrections ;  revelations  made  to  the 
church  to  hasten  the  calling  of  the  gentiles  ;  collections 
for  the  poor  of  one  church  by  those  of  another ;  pro- 
phecies ;  national  scenes  ;  punishments  inflicted  or  pre- 
pared ;  arraignments  before  Jewish  tribunals  or  Roman 
municipal  authorities,  before  governors  and  kings ; 
christian  meetings  from  house  to  house  ;  their  emotions, 
their  prayers,  their  charity,  their  doubts  ;  a  persecuting 
king  smitten  by  an  angel  and  consumed  by  worms,  at 
the  very  moment  when,  to  repeat  the  gratification  he 
had  given  the  people  by  the  murder  of  one  apostle,  that 
of  another  was  now  prepared  by  his  orders  ;  persecu- 
tions in  every  form,  by  synagogues,  by  princes,  by  mu- 
nicipal officers,  by  Jews  or  by  mobs  ;  deliveran -es  of 
godly  men,  now  by  a  child,  now  by  an  angel,  now  by 
a  Roman  tribune,  now  by  a  sea-captain,  by  Pagan  ma- 
gistrates, or  by  idolatrous  soldiers  ;  tempests  and  ship- 
wrecks, which  by  the  accuracy  of  their  nautical  details 
(we  have  witnessed  it,)  still  charm  the  seamen  of  our 
20 


230  EVASIONS. 

day  ;  and  all  that,  in  thirty  pages,  or  twenty-eight  short 
chapters.  Admirable  brevity  !  Did  not  this  concise- 
ness require  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God,  this  choice  of  de- 
tails, this  style,  so  pious,  so  varied,  so  brief  so  richly 
significant,  which  employs  so  few  words,  while  it 
teaches  so  many  things?  Fullness,  conciseness,  clear- 
ness, simplicity,  elevation,  practical  richness  ;  behold 
the  book  of  ecclesiastical  history  which  the  people  of 
God  needed ! 

It  is  true  ;  yet  we  repeat,  it  is  not  thus  that  men  write 
history. 

Could  you  find  upon  the  earth,  a  man  capable  of 
relating  the  assassination  of  his  mother,  with  the  calm- 
ness, the  sobriety,  the  self  possession,  the  apparent  want 
of  passion,  which  distinguish  that  four-fold  history  of 
the  Evangelists  relating  the  punishment  of  that  Jesus, 
whom  they  loved  more  than  any  mother  is  loved,  more 
than  life  is  loved  ;  of  that  Jesus  whom  they  adored :  of 
that  Jesus  whom  they  had  seen  prostrate  in  Gethse- 
mane  ;  then  betrayed,  forsaken,  led  to  Jerusalem  v/ith 
his  hands  bound,  and  finally  nailed  naked  upon  the 
cross,  while  the  sun  withdrew  his  light,  while  the  earth 
was  rent,  and  while  he  who  was  raising  the  dead,  was 
himself  reduced  to  the  state  of  the  dead  !  Was  it  not 
necessary  that  each  line,  each  word  of  such  a  history, 
should  be  written  under  the  guidance  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  that  a  suitable  selection  might  be  made  amidst  a 
world  and  an  age  of  reminiscences  ? 

9.  This  entire  guidance  was  also  necessary  for  that 
prophetic  reserve  which  the  sacred  historians  have  been 
able  to  exercise  in  so  many  respects,  and  for  that  pru- 
dence altogether  divine,  which  manifests  itself  not  only 
in  their  teachings,  but  in  their  silence ;    not  only  in 


THE    HISTORICAL    BOOKS    PROrHETICAL.  231 

the  terms  which  they  emplby.  but  in  those  which  they 
avoid. 

See  them,  for  example,  when  they  speak  of  the  mo- 
ther of  Jesus.  What  divine  foresight,  what  prophetic 
wisdom,  both  in  their  narrations  and  in  their  expres- 
sions !  How  easy  it  was  in  their  ardent  adorations  of 
the  son,  to  have  expressed  themselves  concerning  the 
mother,  in  terms  too  reverential !  Would  not  one  sin- 
gle word,  which  might  so  easily  have  escaped  in  the 
imprudence  of  their  first  emotions,  have  forever  author- 
ized that  idolatry  of  future  ages  towards  Mary,  and  the 
crime  of  that  worship  which  is  now  rendered  her? 
But  that  word  they  have  never  uttered.  But  have  they 
not  merely  gone  so  far  as  to  call  her  the  mother  of 
God  ?  No,  not  even  that ;  although  he  was  to  them 
Emmanuel,  the  Man-God,  the  Word  who  was  in  the 
beginning  with  God,  u'ho  was  God,  and  who  was  made 
flesh.  Hear  them  ;  what  will  they  say  of  her,  after 
the  death  and  resurrection  of  the  Savior  ?  One  single 
sentence;  and  then  perpetual  silence!  '=All  those 
continued  in  prayer  with  the  women,  and  with  Mary, 
the  mother  of  Jesus  and  with  his  brethren.  (Hi  omnes 
erant  perseverantes  in  oratione  cum  mulieribus,  et  Ma- 
ria matre  Jesu  et  fratribns  ejus.")  They  mention  her 
there,  neither  the  first  nor  the  last;  she  appears  there, 
as  the  mother  of  Jesus,  among  the  brothers  of  Jesus 
and  the  Galilean  women.  And  what  will  they  say  of 
her  bf'fore  the  death  of  Christ?  Remark  it,  for  it  is 
not  thus  that  men  relate.  Among  all  the  words  which 
Jesus  may  have  said  to  his  mother  from  the  opening  of 
his  mission,  they  have  selected  but  three  to  report  to 
us.  This  is  the  first :  "  Woman,"  (when  she  interfered 
with  his  ministry  just  commenced,  and  asked  him  to 


232  EVASIONS. 

perform  a  miracle.)  "  woman,  (woman  !)  what  have  I 
to  do  with  thee  ?"*  When  afterwards  a  woman  in 
the  crowd,  exclaimed  in  her  enthusiasm,  "  Happy  the 
womb  that  bare  thee  !"  "  Say  rather,  said  he,  happy 
is  he  who  heareth  the  word  of  God,  and  keepeth  it."t 
That  is  the  second.  Now  hear  the  third  ;  his  mother 
and  brethren  were  shaken  in  their  faith  ;  they  had 
heard  it  said;  he  is  beside  himself,  (dicebant  enim  ; 
quoniam  in  furorem  versus  est ;)  and  one  came  and 
said  :  "  Thy  mother  and  thy  brothers  are  without,  de- 
siring to  speak  with  thee."  "  Who  is  my  mother  ?" 
replied  he :  and  stretching  his  hand  towards  his  disci- 
ples said,  "  Behold  my  mother.  Every  woman  who 
shall  do  the  will  of  my  father  in  heaven,  the  same  is 
my  mother.  Ecce  mater  mea,"  And  when  ;  finally, 
he  saw  her  from  his  cross,  he  no  more  called  her  mo- 
ther ;  but  he  bequeathed  her  to  the  disciple  whom  he 
loved,  saying :  "  Woman,  behold  thy  son  ;  John,  be- 
hold thy  mother  ;  and  from  that  hour,  that  disciple  re- 
ceived her  to  his  house,"  not  to  adore  her,  but  to  pro- 
tect her,  as  a  feeble  and  suffering  being  whose  soul  a 
sword  had  pierced. 

Is  it  then  thus,  we  again  ask,  that  men  write  history  ; 
and  must  it  not  be  that  the  prophetic  Spirit  was  the  sole 
narrator  of  all  these  facts  ? 

We  should  love  to  quote  other  examples  ;  they  pre- 
sent themselves  in  a  throng  bt^fore  our  eyes  at  this  mo- 
ment, and  it  is  a  sacrifice  to  us  to  wiihhold  them;  for 
the  more  closely  these  historical  books  are  studied,  the 
more  the  prophetic  wisdom  of  the  Spirit  of  God  which 
has  dictated  them,  there  reveals  itself  in  the  details  at 
first  the  most  unperceived.     We  should  love  to  signal- 

•  John  ii.  4.  t  Luke  xi.  27. 


THE    HISTORICAL    BOOKS    PROPHETICAL.  233 

ize  among  others,  the  altogether  prophetic  wisdom  with 
which  the  Holv  Spirit  often,  when  he  relates  an  impor- 
tant fact  more  than  once,  tak^'S  care  to  vary  his  expres- 
sions, in  Older  to  prevent  false  interpretations  which 
might  be  given  to  his  words,  and  to  condemn  before- 
hand, the  errors  which  in  after  times  might  be  attributed 
to  them.  We  would  cite,  for  example,  the  remarkable 
and  unanticipated  manner  in  which  the  tenth  precept  of 
the  decalogue  is  repeated  in  D'-uteronomv,*  with  a  re- 
markable transposition  of  its  first  terms  ;  the  Holy- 
Spirit  wishing  thus  to  confound  prophetically  the  arti- 
fice by  which  the  teachers  of  the  church  of  Rome  should 
see  fit,  fifteen  centuries  afterwards,  to  divide  this  com- 
mandment into  two,  thus  to  conceal  their  nefarious  ab- 
duction of  the  second  commandment:  "thousbalt  not 
make  unto  thee  any  images  .  .  .  thou  shalt  not  bow 
down  to  them  nor  serv^e  them  "  We  should  love  to 
show  again  the  varied  expressions  by  which  the  Holy 
Spirit  has  showed  to  us  the  divine  institution  of  the 
Lord's  Supper,  and  has  often  paraphrased  It,  in  order  to 
make  us  the  bf-tter  understand  what  Christ  intended  by 
it,  and  to  condemn  in  advance,  the  carnal  sense  which 
men  should  afterwards  give  to  the  words  :  "  Tins  is  my 
blood,  this  CUP  is  the  new  covenant  in  my  blood  ;"  and 
he  has  also  said  :  '-this  cup  is  the  communion  or  commu- 
nication of  the  blood  of  the  New  Testament."  We 
could  wish  to  point  out  the  prophetic  wisdom,  by  which, 
in  order  to  confound  those  who  should  pretend  in  future 
times,  that  Judas  did  not  take  part  in  the  last  supper  (and 
that  he  went  out  before  it,  or  did  not  come  In  until  after 
it,)  the  Holy  Spirit  has  taken  care  to  inform  us  by  Mark 
and  Matthew,!  that  Jesus  announced  the  treason  of  Ju- 

•  Deut.  V.  21 :  Exod.  xx.  17.  t  Matt.  xxvi.  21,  26 ;  Mark  xiv.  19,  23. 

20* 


234  EVASIONS. 

das  before  the  Supper,  Judas  being  present ;  and  by 
Luke,  that  he  announced  it  after  the  communion,  Judas 
being  present.*  We  should  love  to  show  among  all 
the  writers  of  the  New  Testament,  the  constant  sobriety 
of  their  words,  when  the  relation  of  pastors  to  their 
churches  is  spoken  of;  and  that  admirable  prudence 
with  which  they  have  always  abstained  from  applying, 
even  in  one  single  instance,  to  the  ministers  of  the 
Christian  church,  the  name  of  priest ;  and  have  merely 
appropriated  to  them  the  title  of  elders,  which  was 
given  to  the  laity  of  Israel,  to  distinguish  them  always 
from  the  sacerdotal  race  (that  represented  Jesus  Christ. 
and  that  was  to  cease  when  the  true  and  only  priest 
should  have  appeared.)  We  should  love  too,  to  point 
out  that  prudence  with  which  they  avoid  leading  a  soul 
to  any  other  pastor,  or  any  other  director  ('<"^'/}''/T»??),t 
than  Jesus  Christ;  and  with  which,  in  recommending 
deference  to  their  spiritual  guides,  they  have  taken  care 
to  name  them  always  in  the  plural,  in  order  never  to 
authorize  from  the  Scripture  this  idea  so  natural  to  the 
pastor  and  to  the  flock,  that  every  soul  must  have  its 
pastor  among  men:  "  Call  no  man  upon  earth,  your 
Father,  and  be  ye  not  called  Master,  for  one  is  your 
Master,  even  Christ."  What  precaution,  what  reserve 
in  the  narrations,  in  order  never  to  give  too  much  to 
man,  and  to  recount  the  great  things  which  '•  God  had 
done  by  the  apostles,"J  so  that  each  one  should  be 
abased  before  God,  and  all  the  glory  be  ascribed  to  him, 
and  that  every  servant  of  the  Lord  might  learn  to  say 
with  the  last  prophet  of  the  Old  Testament  and  the  first 
of  the  New  :  "  he  must  increase  but  I  must  decrease." 

•  Luke  xxii.  19,  23.  t  Matt,  xxiii.  8,  Itt 

+  Acts  xiv.  27 ;  Rom.  xv.  18 ;  1  Cor.  iii.  6. 


THE   HISTORICAL    BOOKS   PROPHETICAL.  235 

We  repeat,  that  it  is  almost  doing-  violence  to  our- 
selves, to  have  the  Bible  before  us,  and  quote  no  more 
of  it. 

From  all  these  features  reunited,  we  must  then  con- 
clude, that  if  all  Scripture  is  divinely  inspired  ;  the  his- 
torical books  exhibit  this  divine  intervention  more 
strongly  than  all  the  others  ;  they  show  the  necessity 
of  it  more  clearly ;  they  attest  that  for  such  pages,  it 
was  indispensable  that  the  invisible  and  powerful  hand 
of  the  Holy  Spirit  be  placed  upon  that  of  the  sacred 
writer,  and  that  he  guide  it  from  the  first  line  even  to 
the  last ;  more  than  men  was  required,  more  than 
learned  men,  more  than  holy  men,  more  than  minds 
enlightened  and  superintended,  more  than  angels,  more 
than  archangels  ;  God  must  do  it. 

We  will  say  then  with  Origen :  "  The  sacred  volumes 
breathe  the  plenitude  of  the  Spirit ;  and  there  is  nothing, 
either  in  the  prophets,  in  the  law,  in  the  gospels,  or  in 
the  apostles,  which  does  not  come  from  the  plenitude 
f  the  majesty  of  God  ;'"*  And  with  St.  Ambrose : 
"  Drink  from  both  cups,  the  Old  and  the  New  Testa- 
ments, because  in  each  you  drink  Christ.  Drink  Christ, 
that  you  may  drink  the  blood  by  which  you  are  re- 
deemed ;  drink  Christ,  that  you  may  drink  his  truth. — 
The  Holy  Scriptures  are  drunk,  and  the  divine  Scrip- 
tures are  devoured,  when  the  juices  of  the  eternal  word 
descend  into  the  veins  of  the  mind  and  into  the  strength 
ofthesoul."t 

*  Homil.  Il.in  Jerem.cap.  l. 

t  "Utrumqiie  poculum  bibe  veteris  et  Novi  Testamenti,  quia  ex  utroque 
Christum  bibis.  Bibe  Christum,  ut  bibas  sanguinem  quo  redemptus  es; 
bibe  Christum,  ut  bibas  sermor.es  ejus.— Bibitur  Scriptura  sacra,  et  devo- 
ratur  Scriptura  divina,  cum  in  venas  mentis  ac  vires  animi  succus  verbi 
descendit  eteTni."— Ambrose  in  Psalm  I.  Ennrratio. 


236  EVASIONS. 

"  But  what  then,"  it  has  sometimes  been  said  ;  "  must 
we  believe  that  the  letter  of  the  Pagan  Lysias,  or  the 
haran/jue  of  Gamaliel  the  Jew,  or  the  discourses  of 
Job's  severe  friends  were  inspired  words  ?" — Surely, 
no  ;  no  more  than  those  of  Cain  or  Lamech — of  Rab- 
shakeh  or  Satan.  But  the  sacred  writers  were  as  really 
led  by  God  to  transmit  them  to  us,  as  to  report  to  us  the 
song  of  Mary  in  the  hill-country,  or  that  of  the  seraphim 
in  the  year  of  king  Uzziah's  death,  or  that  of  the  celes- 
tial army  at  Bethlehem.  The  Holy  Spirit  is  not  al- 
ways the  author  of  the  words  which  he  relates  ;  but  he 
IS  always  their  historian. 

But  there  is  still  another  evasion,  which  is  adopted  in 
order  to  separate  one  part  of  the  scriptures  from  the 
Theopneusty.  If  it  is  not  the  most  serious  objection,  it 
is  at  least  one  of  those  the  most  frequently  repeated. 

SECTION  III. 

Would  the  Apparent  lasignijicance  of  Certain  Details  of  the  Biile, 
justify  lis  in  separating  them  from  the  Inspired  Portion? 

"  Does  it  comport  with  the  dignity  of  inspiration  to  accompany 
the  thought  of  the  Apostle  Paul,  even  into  those  vulgar  details 
into  which  we  see  him  descend  in  some  of  his  letters  1  Would 
the  Holy  Spirit  condescend  to  dictate  to  him  those  public  salutations 
which  terminate  his  epistles ; — or  those  medical  counsels  to  Tim- 
othy concerning  his  stomach  and  his  often  infirmities ; — or  those 
commissions  with  which  he  charges  him,  with  regard  to  his  parch- 
ments and  a  certain  cloak  which  he  had  lefl  at  the  house  of  Carpus 
at  Troas,  when  he  was  leaving  Asia  1" 

The  reader  will  suffer  us  to  beseech  him  to  be  cau- 
tious of  this  objection,  when,  holding  the  Bible  in  his 
hands,  he  happens  not  to  recognize  on  the  first  perusal, 
the  signs  of  God's  hand  in  such  or  such  a  passage  of 
the  word.     Let  those  imprudent   hands  not  cast  one 


INSIGNIFICANCE    OF   SOBIE    DETAILS.  237 

verse  of  it  out  of  the  temple  of  the  Scriptures.  They 
hold  an  eternal  book,  all  of  whose  authors  have  said 
with  St.  Paul :  "  And  I  think  that  I  too  have  the  Spirit 
of  the  Lord  !"  If  then,  he  does  not  yet  see  any  thing- 
divine  in  such  or  such  a  passage,  the  fault  is  in  him, 
and  not  in  the  passage.  Let  him  rather  say  with  Ja- 
cob: "Surely  the  Lord  is  in  this  place,  and  I  knew  it 
not  !"*  This  book  can  sustain  the  light  of  science  ;  for 
it  will  bear  that  of  the  last  day.  The  heavens  and  the 
earth  shall  pass  ;  but  none  of  its  words  shall  fail,  not 
even  to  the  least  letter.  God  declares  to  every  one  that 
heareth  the  words  of  this  prophecy ;  that  if  any  one 
shall  take  away  from  the  words  of  this  book.  God  will 
take  away  his  part  from  the  book  of  life.f 

Let  us  examine  more  closely  the  alleged  passages. 
St.  Paul  from  the  depths  of  his  prison,  sends  for  his 
cloak.  He  has  left  it  at  the  house  of  Carpus,  in  Troas, 
and  he  entreats  Timothy  to  hasten  to  him  before  winter  ; 
and  not  forget  to  bring  it  to  him.  This  domestic  detail, 
so  many  thousand  times  objected  against  the  inspiration 
of  the  Scriptures,  from  the  days  of  the  Anomians  of 
Avhom  St.  Jerome  speaks :  J  this  detail  seems  to  you  too 
trivial  for  an  apostolic  book,  or  at  least  too  insignificant 
and  too  foreign  from  all  practical  utility,  for  the  dignity 
of  inspiration.  Unhappy  however,  is  he  who  does  not 
perceive  its  pathetic  grandeur. 

Jesus  Christ  also,  on  the  day  of  his  death,  spoke  of 
his  cloak  and  of  his  vesture.^  Would  you. have  this 
passage  taken  away  from  the  inspired  volume  ?    It  was 

•  Gen.  xxviii.  16.  t  Rev.  x.xii.  18,  19. 

X  See  Proemium  in  Epist.  ad  Philem. 

§  We  suppose  the  author  to  attribute  to  Christ,  what  is  said  about  his 
garments,  because  the  language  in  the  Psalm  is— "t???/  vesture,"  &c.— 
Trans. 


238  EVASIONS. 

after  a  night  of  fiitigue  and  anguish.  They  had  led 
him  about  the  streets  of  Jerusalem  for  seven  successive 
hours,  by  the  light  of  torches,  from  street  to  street,  fiom 
tribunal  to  tribunal,  buffeting  him,  covering  him  with  a 
veil,  striking  his  head  with  staves.  The  morrow's  sun 
was  not  yet  risen,  before  they  had  bound  his  hands  with 
cords,  to  lead  him  again  from  the  high  priest's  house  to 
Pilate's  Prsetorium.  'i'here,  lacerated  with  rods,  bathed 
in  his  own  blood,  then  delivered  for  the  last  punishment, 
to  ferocious  soldiers,  he  had  seen  his  garments  all 
stripped  off^  that  they  might  clothe  him  in  a  scarlet 
robe,  whilst  they  bowed  the  knee  before  him,  placed 
the  reed  in  his  hands,  and  spit  upon  his  face.  Then, 
before  laying  his  cross  upon  his  bruised  frame,  they 
had  replaced  his  garments  upon  his  wounds,  to  lead 
him  to  Calvary;  but,  when  they  ^vere  about  to  proceed 
to  the  execution,  they  took  them  away  for  the  third 
time  ;  and  it  is  then  that,  stripped  of  every  thing,  first 
his  cloak,  then  his  coat,  then  of  even  his  under-dress,  he 
must  die  naked  upon  the  malefactor's  gibbet,  in  the 
view  of  an  immense  multitude.  Was  there  ever  seen 
under  heaven,  a  man,  who  has  not  found  these  details, 
touching,  sublime,  inimitabh^?  And  was  one  ever  seen, 
who,  from  the  account  of  this  death,  thought  of  retrench- 
ing as  useless  or  too  vulgar,  the  history  of  these  gar- 
ments which  they  divided  among  them, — or  of  this 
cloak  for  which  they  cast  lots?  Has  not  infid<  lity 
itself  said  in  speaking  of  that  event,  that  the  majesty  of 
the  Scriptures  astonished  it,  that  their  simplicity  spoke 
to  its  heart ;  that  the  death  of  Socrates  was  that  of  a 
sage,  but  Jesus  Christ's,  that  of  a  God!* — and  if  the 
divine  inspiration  was  reserved  for  a  mere  portion  of 

*  J.  J.  Rousseau. 


INSIGNIFICANCE    OF    SOME    DETAILS.  239 

the  holy  books,  would  it  not  be  for  these  verjr  details? 
Would  it  not  be  for  the  history  of  that  love,  which,  after 
having  lived  upon  the  earth  poorer  than  the  birds  of  the 
air  and  the  foxes  of  the  field,  was  willing  to  die  still 
poorer,  deprived  of  all,  even  to  its  cloak  and  its  under- 
garments, and  fastened  naked  to  the  malefactor's  gibbet 
with  the  arms  extended  and  nailed  to  the  wood  1  Ah  ! 
be  not  solicitous  for  the  Holy  Spirit ;  he  has  not  dero- 
gated from  his  own  majesty ;  and  so  far  from  thinking 
that  he  was  stooping  too  low  in  announcing  these  facts 
to  the  world,  he  had  hastened  to  recount  them  to  it :  and 
that  too,  a  thousand  years  in  advance.  At  the  period 
of  the  Trojan  Avar  he  already  was  singing  them  upon 
the  harp  of  David  :  "  They  have  pierced  my  hands  and 
my  feet,"  said  he,  ''  they  look  and  stare  upon  me,  they 
part  my  garments  among  them,  and  cast  lots  upon  my 
vesture."* 

But  it  is  the  same  Spirit  who  would  show  us  St.  Paul 
'Writing  to  Timothj^,  and  requesting  him  to  bring  his 
cloak.  Hear  him  ;  he  too  is  stripped  of  every  thing. 
In  his  youth,  he  was  already  eminent,  a  favourite  of 
princes,  admired  of  all  :  but  now  he  has  left  every  thing 
for  Christ.  It  is  now  thirty  years  and  more,  that  he 
has  been  poor,  in  labors  more  than  the  others,  in  wounds, 
more  than  they,  in  prison  oftener  ;  five  times  he  had 
received  of  the  Jews  forty  stripes  save  one  ;  thrice  was 
he  beaten  with  rods  ;  once  he  was  stoned ;  thrice  he 
has  suffered  shipwreck  ;  often  in  journeyings  ;  in  perils 
upon  the  sea,  in  perils  in  the  city,  in  perils  in  the  desert: 
in  watcbings  oft,  in  hunger  and  in  thirst,  in  cold  and 
nakedness-f  (we  quote  his  own  words.)  Hear  him  now:* 
behold  him  advanced  in  age  ;    he  is  in  his  last  prison  ; 

•  Psalm,  xxii.  18,  19 :  John,  xix.  23,  24.  t  2  Cor.  xi.  2.3—27. 


240  EVASIONS. 

he  is  at  Rome ;  he  is  expecting  his  sentence  of  death  ; 
he  has  fought  the  good  fight ;  he  has  finished  his 
course,  he  has  kept  the  faith  ;  but  he  is  cold,  winter  is 
coming  on,  and  he  is  poorly  clad  !  Buried  in  a  dun- 
geon of  the  Mamerline  prisons,  he  is  so  much  despised, 
that  even  all  the  Christians  of  Rome  are  ashamed  of 
him,  and  that  at  his  first  appearing-,  no  man  was  will- 
ing to  befriend  him.  Yet,  he  had  received,  ten  years 
before,  while  a  prisoner  at  Rome,  and  loaded  with 
chains,  at  least  some  money  from  the  Philippians  ;  who, 
knowing  his  sufferings,  united  together  in  their  indi- 
gence, to  send  him  some  succor.  But  now,  behold 
him  forsaken  ;  no  one  but  St.  Luke  is  with  him  ;  all 
have  abandoned  him ;  winter  is  approaching.  He 
would  need  a  cloak  ;  he  has  left  his  own,  two  hundred 
leagues  off,  at  the  house  of  Carpus  in  Troas  ;  and  no 
one  in  the  cold  prisons  of  Rome  would  lend  him  one. 
Has  he  not  then  left  every  thing,  with  joy,  for  Christ; 
has  he  not  esteemed  all  the  glory  of  this  world  as  dross 
that  he  might  win  Christ ;  and  does  he  not  suffer  all 
things  cheerfully  for  the  elect's  sake  ?*  We  were  our- 
selves at  Rome,  last  year,  in  a  hotel,  on  a  rainy  day,  in 
the  beginning  of  November.  Chilled  by  the  piercing 
dampness  of  the  cold,  evening  air,  we  had  a  vivid  con- 
ception of  the  holy  apostle  in  the  subterranean  dungeons 
of  the  capitol,  dictating  the  last  of  his  letters,  regretting 
the  absence  of  his  cloak,  and  intreating  Timothy  to 
bring  it  to  him  before  the  winter  ! 

Who  would  then  take  from  the  inspired  Epistles  so 
striking  and  pathetic  a  feature  ?  Does  not  the  Holy 
Spirit  carry  you  to  the  prison  of  Paul,  to  astonish  you 
with  this  tender  self-renunciation  and  this  sublime  pov- 

•  Phil  iii.  8.    2  Tim.  ii.  10. 


INSIGNIFICANCE    OF    SOME    DETAILS.  241 

erty  ;  just  too,  as  he  shewed  you  with  your  own  eyes, 
his  charity,  sometime  before,  when  he  made  him  write 
in  his  letter  to  the  Philippians  :  "  I  weep  in  writing  to 
you,  because  there  are  many  among  you,  who  mind 
earthly  things,  whose  end  is  destruction  ?"  Do  you  not 
seem  to  see  him  in  his  prison,  loaded  with  chains,  while 
he  is  writing,  and  tears  are  falling  upon  his  parchment? 
And  does  it  not  seem  to  you  that  you  beheld  that  poor 
body,  to-day  miserably  clothed,  suffering  and  benumbed ; 
to-morrow  beheaded  and  dragged  to  the  Tiber,  in  ex- 
pectation of  the  day  when  the  earth  shall  give  up  her 
dead,  and  the  sea  the  dead  which  are  in  it ;  and  when 
Christ  shall  transform  our  vile  bodies,  to  make  them 
like  unto  his  own  glorious  body  ?  And  if  these  details 
are  beautiful,  think  you  they  are  not  also  useful  ?  And 
if  they  are  already  useful  to  him  who  reads  them  as  a 
simple  historical  truth,  what  will  they  not  become  to 
hini  who  believes  in  their  Theopneusty,  and  who  says 
to  himself:  oh  my  soul,  these  words  are  written  by 
Paul;  but  it  is  thy  God  who  addresses  them  to  thee? 
Who  can  tell  the  force  and  consolation,  which,  by  their 
very  familiarity  and  naturalness,  they  have  for  eighteen 
centuries,  conveyed  into  dungeons  and  huts  !  Who  can 
count  the  poor  and  the  martyrs,  to  whom  such  passages 
have  given  encouragement,  example  and  joy  ?  We  just 
now  remember,  in  Switzerland,  the  Pastor  Juvet,  to 
whom  a  coverlet  was  refused,  twenty  years  ago,  in  the 
prisons  of  the  Canton  de  Yaud.  We  remember  that 
Jerome  of  Prague,  shut  up  for  three  hundred  and  forty 
days  in  the  dungeons  of  Constance,  at  the  bottom  of  a 
dark  and  loathsome  tower,  and  going  out  only  to  appear 
before  his  murderers.  Nor  have  we  forgotten  the  holy 
Bishop  Hooper,  quitting  his  dark  and  dismal  dungeon, 
21 


242  EVASIONS. 

with  wretched  clothes  and  a  borrowed  cloak,  to  go  to 
the  scaffold,  supported  upon  a  staff,  and  bowed  by  the 
sciatica.  Venerable  brethren,  happy  martyrs  ;  doubt- 
less you  then  remembered  your  brother  Paul,  shut  up 
in  the  prison  of  Rome,  suffering  from  cold  and  naked- 
ness, asking  for  his  cloak  !  Ah  !  unfortunate  he,  who 
does  not  see  the  sublime  humanity,  the  tender  grandeur, 
the  fore-seeing  and  divine  sympathy,  the  depth  and  the 
charm  of  such  a  mode  of  teaching  !  But  still  more  un- 
fortunate perhaps  he,  who  declares  it  human,  because 
he  does  not  comprehend  it.  We  would  here  quote  the 
beautiful  remarks  of  the  respectable  Haldane  on  this 
verse  of  St.  Paul.  '•  This  passage,  if  you  consider  the 
place  it  occupies  in  this  Epistle,  and  in  the  solemn 
farewells  of  Paul  to  his  disciples,  presents  this  Apostle 
to  our  view,  in  the  situation  most  calculated  to  afft  ct  us. 
He  has  just  been  before  the  Emperor  ;  he  is  about  to 
finish  his  days  by  martyrdom ;  his  departure  is  at  hand, 
the  crown  of  righteousness  is  reserved  for  him  ;  behold 
him  on  the  confines  of  two  worlds  ;  in  this  which  he  is 
about  to  leave,  ready  to  be  beheaded,  as  a  malefactor, 
by  the  orders  of  Nero  ;  in  that  which  he  is  going  to  en- 
ter,  crowned  as  a  just  man  by  the  Lord  of  lords  ;  in  this, 
abandoned  of  men  ;  in  that,  welcomed  by  angels ;  in 
athis,  needing  a  poor  cloak  to  cover  him  ;  in  that,  cov- 
ered with  the  righteousness  of  the  saints  ;  clothed  upon 
with  his  heavenly  tabernacle  of  light  and  joy  ;  so  that 
mortality  is  swallowed  up  of  life." 

Ah,  rather  than  object  to  such  a  passage,  thereby  to 
deprive  the  Scriptures  of  their  infallibility,  we  should 
there  recognize  that  wisdom  of  God,  which,  so  often  by 
one  single  touch,  has  given  us  instructions,  for  which, 
without  that,  many  pages  would  have  been  ne.  °ssary. 


INSIGNIFICANCE    OP    SOME    DETAILS.  243 

We  should  adore  that  tender  condescension,  which, 
Stooping  even  to  our  weakness,  is  pleased,  not  only  to 
reveal  to  us  the  highest  thoughts  of  heaven  in  the  sinn- 
plest  language  of  earth,  but  also  to  offer  them  to  us  un- 
der forms  so  living,  so  dramatic,  so  penetrating,  often 
compressing  them  in  order  to  render  them  more  intelli- 
gible, within  the  narrow  space  of  a  single  verse. 

It  is  then  thus  that  St.  Paul,  by  these  words  thrown 
at  hazard  even  into  the  last  commission  of  a  familiar 
letter,  casts  for  us  a  rapid  flood  of  light  over  his  min- 
istry, and  discovers  to  us  by  a  word,  the  entire  life  of 
an  Apostle  ;  as  a  single  flash  of  lightning  in  the  even- 
ing, illuminates  in  an  instant,  all  the  tops  of  our  Alps; 
and  as  persons  sometimes  show  you  all  their  soul  by  a 
single  look. 

How  many  striking  examples  of  this  could  we  quote. 
They  present  themselves  in  crowds  ;  but  we  are  obliged 
to  restrain  ourselves  ;  and  we  should  in  fact  rather 
confine  ourselves  to  the  very  passages  which  the  objec- 
tor selects. 

Yet  we  must  say  before  going  any  farther ;  we  al- 
most blush  to  defend  the  word  of  God  under  this  form  ; 
and  we  ftel  for  this  species  of  apology,  a  kind  of  con- 
scientious disgust.  Is  it  entirely  proper  ;  and  can  we 
ffive  ourselves  to  it  without  irreverence?  Care  must 
be  taken  at  all  times,  as  to  the  manner  of  defending  the 
things  of  God  ;  lest  we  imitate  the  imprudence  of  Uzzah, 
who  reached  out  his  hand  to  hold  up  the  ark  of  God, 
because  the  oxen  had  slipped.  The  wrath  of  God,  we 
ire  told,  burned  against  his  indiscretion.*  If  it  is  well 
understood  on  both  sides,  that  a  word  is  in  the  canon  of 
ihe  oracles  of  God,  why  defend  it  as  worthy  of  him,  by 

•  2  Sam.  vi.  6,  7. 


244  EVASIONS. 

human  reasons  ?  You  might,  without  doubt,  defend  it 
against  unbelievers  ;  but  with  men  who  recognize  the 
divinity  of  the  Scriptures,  is  it  not  to  wrong  this  word  : 
is  it  not  to  take  a  false  position,  and  touch  the  ark  as 
Uzzah  did  ?  If  this  word  should  present  itself  to  our 
eyes  as  a  root  out  of  a  dry  ground ;  were  it  without 
any  charm  ;  were  there  neither  form  nor  comeliness, 
nor  any  thing  in  it  to  make  it  desirable  ;  still  ought  you 
to  venerate  it  and  expect  every  thing  for  it,  from  him 
who  has  given  it.  Is  it  not  then  to  fail  of  your  duty  to 
him  ;  to  attempt  when  he  speaks,  to  prove  by  argument, 
the  respect  which  is  his  due?-  Should  I  not  be  asham- 
ed, when  my  Savior  and  my  God  has  been  showed  me, 
rising  from  supper,  taking  a  basin,  girding  himself  with 
a  napkin,  and  coming  to  wash  the  feet  of  his  disciples ; 
should  [  not  be  ashamed  to  set  myself  to  proving,  that, 
in  spite  of  all  that,  he  is  still  the  Christ !  Ah  ;  I  would 
rather  adore  him  more  than  ever !  But  it  is  so  ;  the 
majesty  of  the  Scriptures  will  stoop  even  to  us.  Do 
you  see  it  there  rising  from  the  table,  laying  aside  its 
robe,  putting  on  the  dress  of  a  servant,  and  kneeling  be- 
fore sinners  to  wash  their  feet?  "  If  I  do  not  wash 
thee,  thou  hast  no  part  with  me."  Is  it  not  then,  in  this 
very  humiliation  that  it  reveals  itself  with  the  greatest 
charm,  as  the  voice  of  the  humiliated  Word  ?  Could 
we  mistake  it,  and  could  we  rank  ourselves  for  an  in- 
stant by  the  side  of  those  who  do  not  know  it? 

It  seems  to  us,  that  there  is  no  arrogance  comparable 
to  that  of  a  man,  who,  recognising  the  Bible  as  a  book 
of  God,  pretends  after  all,  to  assay  it  with  his  hand ;  to 
separate  the  pure  from  its  impure,  the  inspired  from  the 
uninspired,  God  from  man.  It  is  to  overthrow  all  the 
foundations  of  faith  ;  it  is  to  make  it  no  more  a  belief  in 


INSIGNIFICANCE    OF    SOME    DETAILS.  245 

God,  biU  a  belief  in  man.  It  ought  then  to  be  enough 
for  us  that  a  chapter  or  a  word  makes  part  of  the  Scrip- 
lures,  to  induce  us  to  believe  it  divinely  good  ;  for  God 
has  pronounced  upon  it,  as  upon  the  creation  :  "  I  have 
seen  every  thing  that  I  have  made,  and  behold,  all  is 
■  good."  We  will  never  then  say,  I  find  this  word  ad- 
mirable, therefore  it  is  of  God  ;  and  still  less,  I  do  not 
see  its  utility,  therefore  it  is  of  man.  God  preserve  us 
from  it !  But  we  will  say,  it  is  in  the  Scriptures  ;  then 
it  is  from  God.  It  is  from  God  ;  then  it  is  useful,  it  is 
wise,  it  is  admirable ;  if  I  do  not  see  it  such  yet,  the 
fault  is  in  me  alone. 

We  regard  as  utterly  misapplied,  this  protection  which 
the  wisdom  of  man  would  extend  to  that  of  God ;  we 
hold  as  an  outrage,  this  gross  stamp  with  which  it  pre- 
tends to  legalize  the  Holy  Scriptures,  and  this  absurd 
signature  with  which  it  dares  to  authorize  their  pas- 
sages. 

If  then  we  here  proceed  to  prove  the  divine  wisdom 
of  certain  passages  which  some  have  dared  to  pronounce 
human,  it  is  not  to  found  their  divinity  upon  the  judg- 
ments of  man's  better  informed  wisdom,  nor  preposter- 
ously to  make  them  respected,  merely  on  account  of  the 
beauty  which  is  there  revealed.  Our  respect  has  pre- 
ceded a  particular  examination  ;  it  was  founded  upon 
the  fact  that  the  passage  is  written  in  the  oracles  of  God. 
From  that  time,  before  having  seen,  we  have  believed. 
We  then  intend  to  refute  the  objection,  merely  by  pre- 
senting some  examples  of  its  rashness.  Let  us  hear  yet 
two  or  three  passages  to  which  some  have  pretended  to 
refuse  the  honors  of  inspiration,  because,  on  a  superficial 
examination,  they  have  thought  them  to  be  without 
spiritual  bearing.  We  can  here  quote  only  a  very  small 
21* 


246  EVASIONS. 

number.  A  sentence  may  be  pronounced  useless  or 
vulgar  in  four  words  ;  but  to  show  that  the  objection  is 
founded  in  misapprehension,  pages  would  be  requisite. 

One  of  the  passages  which  we  find  frequently  placed 
in  the  front,  when  they  would  justify  a  distinction  be- 
'tween  that  which  is  inspired  and  that  which  is  unin- 
spired in  the  word  of  God,  is  the  recommendation  of  St. 
Paul  to  Timothy,  on  account  of  his  bad  digestion,  and 
the  maladies  under  which  this  young  disciple  was  suf- 
fering :  "  drink  no  more  water,  but  a  little  wine,  for  thy 
stomach's  sake  and  thine  often  infirmities."* 

At  the  same  time,  if  you  examine  this  passage  more 
closely,  what  an  admirable  and  living  revelation  will 
you  find,  of  the  greatness  of  the  Apostolic  vocation  and 
of  the  amiableness  of  the  Christian  character.  Remark 
first,  that  it  was  pronounced  as  in  the  temple  of  God  ; 
for,  immediately  before,  you  have  these  solemn  words: 
"  I  charge  thee  before  God  and  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
and  the  elect  angels,  that  thou  observe  these  things  with- 
out preferring  one  before  another,  doing  nothing  by  par- 
tiality. Lay  hands  suddenly  on  no  man ;  neither  be 
partakers  of  other  men's  sins :  keep  thyself  pure. 
Drink  no  more  only  water."  We  see  that  it  is  in  the 
presence  of  their  common  Master  and  of  the  holy  an- 
gels, that  St.  Paul  would  speak  to  his  disciple.  Enter- 
ing then  into  the  same  temple,  to  understand  him,  and 
placing  ourselves  at  the  same  height,  in  arraigning  our- 
selves as  he  did,  "  before  the  Lord  Jesus  and  his  holy 
angels  ;"  then  we  shall  quickly  recognize  how  manj- 
beauties  these  passages  reveal  in  the  ministry  of  the 
Apostles,  and  in  the  ways  of  the  Lord  towards  his  own. 
The   celebrated    Chrysostom    hud    well  understood  it, 

•  1  Tim.  V.  23. 


INSIGNIFICANCE    OF    SOME    DETAILS.  247 

when  preaching  upon  these  very  words,  he  observed 
with  so  much  feeling,  how  little  the  most  ardent  and  the 
most  useful  servants  of  God  ought  to  be  surprised,  if  it 
ever  happens  that  the  Lord  sees  proper  to  try  them,  as 
Timothy  was  tried,  by  infirmities  in  their  lungs  or  in 
their  head,  or  in  their  stomach  ;  if  he  puts  some  thorn 
in  their  flesh,  and  if  he  thus  buffets  them  by  some  angel 
of  Satan,  in  order  to  increase  on  the  one  hand  their  sym- 
pathy, their  meekness,  their  tenderness  of  heart,  their 
cordial  affections,  their  tender  compassions  ;  and  on  the 
other,  their  patience,  self-renunciation,  self-denial,  and 
above  all,  their  spirit  of  prayer.  Reperuse  seriously, 
and  as  in  the  light  of  the  last  day,  this  beautiful  parage 
of  the  Apostle  ;  and  immediately  in  the  narrow  space 
of  this  single  verse,  you  shall,  admire  the  many  precious 
instructions  the  Holy  Spirit  w'UDuld  here  give  us,  besides 
those  which  the  pious  bishop  'of  Constantinople  has  re- 
marked. How  many  words  an&'almost  chapters  would 
have  been  necessary  to  say  so  much  under  another 
form  !  You  Avill  again  learn  there,  for  example,  the 
sobriety  of  this  young  and  ardent  Timothy :  he  had 
wished,  like  St.  Paul,  to  "  keep  his  body  under  ;"  he 
drank  only  water — he  abstained  entirely  from  wine. 
You  will  there  see  in  the  third  place,  with  what  tender 
and  paternal  delicacy  the  Apostle  reproved  him,  either 
for  his  imprudence,  or  for  an  austerity  which  he  carried 
too  fir.  You  will  there  see  again,  with  what  wisdom 
the  Lord  authorizes  and  invites  by  thpse  words,  the  men 
of  God  to  take  the  necessary  care  of  their  health,  at  the 
same  time  however,  that  he  has  thought  best  to  dimin- 
ish it  by  sickness.  You  will  there  see,  in  the  fifth 
place,  with  what  prophetic  foresight  this  word  placed 
in  the  mouth  of  an  apostle,  condemns  in  advance,  the 


248  EVASIONS. 

human  traditions  which,  in  future  days  were  to  forbid  to 
the  faithful,  the  use  of  wine  as  an  impurity.  You  will 
there  see,  in  the  sixth  place,  with  what  tender  solicitude, 
what  sympathy,  what  paternal  vigilance,  the  Apostle 
Paul,  in  the  midst  of  his  high  functions,  and  despite  the 
"care  of  all  the  churches  from  Jerusalem  to  Ulyrium. 
and  of  those  from  Ulyrium  even  to  Spain,"  which  came 
upon  him,  was  still  not  unmindful  of  the  personal  cir- 
cumstances of  his  beloved  disciple,  of  his  health,  of  the 
infirmities  of  his  stomach,  of  his  frequent  maladies  and 
of  his  imprudent  habits  of  daily  regimen.  You  will 
there  learn  again,  a  historical  fact  which  will  cast  for 
you  a  useful  light  upon  the  nature  of  the  miraculous 
gifts.  In  spite  of  the  interest  of  St.  Paul  for  the  ailments 
of  his  disciple,  it  was  not  possible  for  him  to  restore 
Timothy,  even  for  him  who  had  so  often  healed  the 
sick,  and  even  raised  the  dead  ;  because  the  apostles, 
(and  we  learn  it  too  by  this  verse,  as  by  the  sickness  of 
Epaphroditus)*  had  not  received  the  continual  gift  of 
miraculous  power,  any  more  than  that  of  theopneusty  ; 
and  that  this  virtue  must  be  renewed  to  them  for  every 
special  occasion. 

But  if  all  these  lessons  of  the  apostle  are  important, 
and  if  we  receive  them  all  thus  in  one  single  verse,  and 
in  the  manner  most  calculated  to  affect  us  ;  oh  !  how 
uoautiful  they  become,  and  how  penetrating  they  are,  for 
a  simple  and  Christian  heart,  as  soon  as  it  is  assured 
that  this  is  not  merely  the  word  of  a  good  man  ;  that  it 
is  not  even  that  of  an  apostle  merely  ;  but  that  it  is  the 
voice  of  its  God,  who  will  teach  it  in  so  affecting  a  man- 
ner, sobriety,  fraternal  affection,  tender  interest  for  the 
health  of  others,  the  usefulness  of  afflictions  and  of  in- 

*  Philip,  ii.  27. 


INSIGNIFICANCE    OF    SOME    DETAILS.  249 

firmities  for  the  most  zealous  servants  of  God  ;  and  who, 


to  give  us  all  these  precious  lessons,  deigns  to  address 
us  by  the  mouth  of  a  simple  creature !  For,  the  Lord 
is  good;  he  has  placed  his  tender  compassions  above  all 
his  works ;  the  heavens  are  his  throne,  and  the  earth  is 
his  footstool ;  he  counts  the  stars  ;  he  heals  the  broken- 
hearted, and  he  treasures  our  tears  in  his  phials.* 

The  salutations  of  St.  Paul  at  the  close  of  his  epis- 
tles, are  often  objected  to,  which  are,  they  sajr^  "  only 
the  ordinary  compliments  that  we  all  employ  in  closing 
a  letter.  There  is  nothing  unworthy  of  an  apostle,"  it 
has  been  admitted  ;  "  nor  is  there  any  thing  there  in- 
spired. The  Holy  Spirit  has  let  the  pen  of  Paul  run 
on  there,  in  order  that  he  might  give  free  course  to  his 
personal  affections,  as  we  ourselves  should  allow  a  se- 
cretary to  terminate  alone,  by  the  usual  compliments,  a 
letter,  whose  hrst  pages  W8  had  dictated  to  him.  Con- 
sult, for  instance  the  last  chapter  of  the  Epistle  to  the 
Romans.  Is  it  not  sufficiently  evident  that  the  apostle 
there  abandons  himself  during  sixteen  verses,  to  the  en- 
tirely personal  reminiscences  of  his  friendship  ?  Had 
this  dry  catalogue  of  all  these  persons  need  of  the  Holy 
Spirit?  The  Apostle  points  out  eighteen  of  them  by 
name,  without  counting  all  those  who  were  to  be  saluted 
collectively  in  the  house  of  Aquilas,  in  that  of  Narcis- 
sus, as  in  that  of  Aristobulus.  These  verses  do  not  re- 
■^uire  inspiration  ;  and  it  would  at  the  most,  have  been 
sufficient,  in  order  to  have  them  written,  that  the  Holy 
Spirit  should  have  exercised  that  superintendence,  under 
which  they  wrote  when  left  to  their  personality." 

We  fear  not  to  avow  it ;  we  take  pleasure  in  recol- 
lecting here  those  sixteen  verses  so  often  objected  to  ; 

'  Ps.  cxlv.  9 ;  Isa.  Ixvi.  1 ;  Ps.  Ivi.  8,  9. 


250  EVASIONS. 

for  they  are,  on  the  contrary,  of  the  number  of  those 
passages,  the  divine  wisdom  of  which  commends  itself; 
and  if  you  look  closely  at  them,  you  will  immediately 
admire  with  us,  the  fecundity,  the  condescension,  and 
the  elevation  of  this  mode  of  instruction  ;  you  will  there 
find  under  the  most  practical  and  natural  form,  a  living 
picture  of  a  primitive  church.  You  will  there  discover 
with  lively  interest,  the  relations  of  the  members  to  on8 
other  ;  and  vou  will  there  see  to  what  heio-ht  even 


an( 


you  wi 


the  most  ignorant  and  the  most  feeble  members  were 
raised  in  its  bosom. 

Hear  first  with  what  tender  interest,  the  Apostle  re- 
commends to  the  charity  of  the  Church  in  Rome,  that 
humble  woman  who  was  making,  as  it  appears,  a  jour- 
ney from  Corinth  into  Italy,  for  her  temporal  affairs. 
She  was  a  beloved  sister,  who  had  given  herself  to  the 
service  of  the  saints,  and  who  had  not  feared  to  open 
her  house  to  a  great  number  of  the  faithful,  and  to  Paul 
himself,  notwithstanding  the  perils  of  this  hospitality. 
She  was  the  servant  of  the  Church  of  Cenchrea.  It 
was  necessary  then  that  the  brethren  who  were  at  Rome, 
should  welcome  her  in  the  Lord,  and  that  they  should 
administer  to  her  wants.  See  again,  the  example  which 
the  apostle  furnishes  us,  in  a  few  words,  of  that  christian 
urbanity  which  should  characterize  all  the  mutual  re- 
lations of  the  children  of  God.  Admire  how,  while 
he  passes  so  rapidly  in  review,  the  brethren  and  the 
sisters  of  the  Church  of  Rome,  he  can  spread,  even  over 
this  nomenclature  that  is  called  arid,  the  sweet  unction 
of  his  charity.  He  has  some  words  of  encouragement 
and  tender  esteem  for  each  one  of  them,  he  there  recalls 
the  generous  hospitality  of  Phebe,  the  dangers  of  death 
which   Aquila  and  his  wife  had  braved  for  him  :  the 


INSIGNIFICANCE   OF    SOME    DETAILS.  251 

honor  of  Epinetus  as  having  heen  the  first  of  the  Acha- 
ians  converted  to  Christ;  the  great  labors  of  Mary,  of 
Andronica  and  of  Jiinia,  who  had  even  preceded  him 
in  the  faith  :  his  christian  love  for  Amplias  ;  the  evan- 
gelical works  of  Urbanes,  the  tried  fidelity  of  Apelles  ; 
the  multiplied  labors  of  Tryphena  and  Tryphosa  in  the 
Lord,  and  those  of  the  beloved  Persis.  What  an  appeal 
again  to  the  conscience  of  every  serious  reader,  is  this 
rapid  catalogue  !  See  then,  ought  he  to  say  to  himself, 
the  character  of  the  faithful  whom  he  washed  to  be  sa- 
luted in  the  Church  of  Rome  !  And  if  the  same  apostle 
was  writing  a  letter  to  the  Church,  in  which  I  myself 
occupy  a  place,  what  would  he  say  of  me  ?  Would 
my  name  be  found  there  ?  Could  he  there  add,  that  I 
receive  as  Phebe,  the  saints  into  my  house  ;  that  I  hold, 
as  Aquila  and  Priscilla,  christian  meetings  under  my 
liappy  roof?  that  I  have,  as  Mary,  taken  much  pains 
for  the  ministers  of  the  Lord  ;  that  I  have  suffered  for 
Jesus  Christ,  as  Andronica  and  Junia  ;  that  I  am  a  man 
approved  in  Christ,  as  Apelles  ;  that  I  am  elect  in  our 
Lord,  as  Rufus  :  that  I  am,  as  Urbanes,  his  companion 
in  work ;  that  I  labor  in  our  Lord,  as  Tryphena  and 
Tryphosa  :  and  that  I  even  labor  much,  as  the  beloved 
Persis  I 

But  see  above  all,  what  a  lesson  for  Christian  women, 
is  contained  in  these  admirable  verses.  In  the  simple 
familiarity  of  the  salutations  which  terminate  this  letter, 
how  he  shows  them  the  elevation  of  their  calling  ! 
What  an  important  part  is  there  assigned  them  in  the 
church,  and  what  a  place  in  heaven  !  Without  having 
yet  seen  the  city  of  Rome,  Paul  mentions  there,  by 
their  own  name,  and  as  his  companions  in  labor,  as 
many  as  nine  or  ten  vromen.     There  is  first^  besides 


2S2  EVASIONS. 

Phebe,  that  admirable  Piiscilla,  that  happy  wife  of  the 
happy  Aquila,  who  had  even  exposed  herself  to  pun- 
ishment for  the  apostle,  and  to  whom  all  the  churches 
of  the  Gentiles  were  grateful.  Then  came  a  woman 
named  MaVy,  who  had,  says  he,  labored  much  for  the 
apostles  ;  there  was  Tryphena  and  Tryphosa,  who  la- 
bored still  in  the  Lord  ;  there  was  Persis,  who  was 
particularly  dear  to  him,  and  who  had  laboured  much 
in  the  Lord ;  there  was  Julia,  there  was  the  sister  of 
Marcus :  there  was  perhaps  Olympas  ;*  there  was 
finally  the  venerable  mother  of  Rufus.  And  observe, 
in  passing,  with  w^hat  respect  he  names  this  woman, 
and  with  w4iat  delicacy  he  salutes  her  by  the  endearing 
name  of  mother.  Is  not  that  the  christian  politeness 
which  he  recommended  to  these  same  Romans  in  the 
12th  chapter  of  this  letter :  '•  Salute  Rufus,  elect  in  the 
Lord,  writes  he,  and  his  mother  who  is  also  mine  !"t — 
What  a  touching  model  too  do  these  same  verses  pro- 
pose to  husbands  and  wives,  in  the  persons  of  Aquila 
and  Priscilla! — You  see  them  here  in  Romie ;  you 
may  have  seen  them,  five  years  before,  driven  from 
Italy  by  the  Emperor  Claudius,  arriving  at  Corinth, 
and  receiving  the  apostle  Paul  into  their  house  ;  then, 
eighteen  months  afterwards,  departing  Mdth  him  for 
Asia,  and  living  at  Ephesus,  where  they  had  already  a 
church  in  their  house/|  and  where  they  welcomed  with 
so  much  success,  the  young  and  brilliant  Apollos,  who, 
notwithstanding  his  talents,  found  himself  happy  in 
placing  himself  in  the  school  of  their  christian  conver- 
sation and  charit)^.  Now  that  Claudius  had  just  died 
and  given  place  to  Nero,  you  see  them,  scarcely  re 

•  This  may  be  a  woman's  name,  but  more  probably  it  is  a  man's, 
t  Rom.  xii.  10.  %  1  Cor.  xvi.  9. 


INSIGNIFICANCE    OF    SOME    DETAILS.  253 

turned  to  Rome,  already  consecrating  their  new  dwell- 
ing to  the  church  of  God.  It  is  at  their  house  that  the 
saints  assemble  ;  and  you  here  learn  again,  as  in  pass- 
ing, that  these  two  had  not  hesitated  to  expose  together 
their  lires  for  that  of  St.  Paul. 

But,  besides  all  these  lessons  which,  in  these  sixteen 
little  verses,  are  offered  to  your  consciences,  you  may 
likewise  learn  from  them,  two  facts  of  great  importance 
in  the  history  of  the  Church.  And  first  you  see  there, 
with  the  simplest  and  fullest  evidence,  that  at  that  day, 
no  one  in  Rome  thought  of  such  a  thing  as  the  episco- 
pacy, nor  popeship,  nor  primacy,  nor  even  of  the  pre- 
sence of  Peter.  Do  you  not  recognize  a  prophetic 
foresight  in  the  care  which  the  Holy  Spirit  has  taken  to 
introduce  into  this  epistle  to  the  Romans,  that  which  he 
has  done  for  no  other  of  the  fourteen  letters  of  St.  Paul, 
and  to  terminate  it  thus  b}''  a  long  catalogue  of  the  wo- 
men and  the  men  most  esteemed  at  that  time  in  all  the 
Church  of  Rome?  Behold  then  the  Apostle  of  the 
Gentiles,  who,  twenty  years  after  his  conversion,  in 
writing  to  them,  salutes  at  least  twenty-eight  of  their 
number  by  their  names,  and  many  others  besides,  bv 
collective  designations,  and  who  says  not  one  word  to 
them  of  the  Prince  of  the  Apostles,  as  he  is  called,  of 
the  vicar  of  Jesus  Christ,  of  his  superior,  the  chief  of 
the  universal  Church,  of  the  founder  of  the  Romish 
Church  !  St.  Peter  was  the  Apostle  of  the  Circumci- 
sion, and  not  of  the  Gentiles  :*  his  place  was  in  Jeru- 
salem ;  it  is  there  we  must  look  for  him,  and  it  is  there 
St.  Paul  had  always  found  him.  In  his  first  journey, 
three  years  after  his  conversion,  Paul  visits  him  there, 
and  remains  fifteen  days  in  his  house. f     In  his  second 

*  Gal.  ii.  7,  8,  9.  t  Gal.  i.  IS. 

22 


254 


EVASIONS, 


journey,  for  the  first  council,  he  meets  him  there  again. 
In  his  third  journey,  in  the  year  44,  at  the  epoch  of  the 
death  of  Herod  Agrippa,  St.  Peter  is  still  living  at  Je- 
rusalem.* In  his  fourth  journey,  seventeen  years  after 
his  conversion,!  St.  Paul  again  finds  him  there,  in  the 
capacity,  mark  it  well,  of  Apostle,  not  to  the  Gentiles, 
but  to  the  Circumcision.  And  when  at  last  he  is  on 
his  fifth  and  final  journey,  he  w^rites  to  the  Romans  and 
to  the  Galatians  ,  and  then,  that  all  the  Church  mio-ht 
fully  understand  that  Peter  is  not  at  Rome,  and  that  he 
has  never  been  there,  Paul  shall  take  pains  to  salute  by 
their  names,  all  of  the  most  distinguished  Christians  of 
Rome,  even  of  the  women.  What  bishop  is  there  of 
our  day,  in  the  Latin  sect,  who  would  dare  to  write  a 
letter  in  sixteen  chapters  to  the  Church  of  Rome,  with- 
out uttering  a  word  in  it,  either  of  St.  Peter,  or  of  him 
whom  they  call  the  Vicar  of  Jesus  Christ?  J 

But  there  is  another  historical  fact,  still  more  inter- 
esting, to  the  knowledge  of  which,  these  sixteen  verses 
which  have  been  called  useless,  lead  us  by  the  most 
striking  features.  See,  in  the  very  details  of  these 
short  salutations,  by  what  humble  instruments,  and  yet 
with  what  expansion,  the  gospel  had  in  so  short  a  time, 
established  itself  in  the  mighty  Rome.  No  apostle  had 
put  his  foot  there,^  and  yet  see  what  had  been  already 
the  progre.^^s  of  the  word  of  God,  through  the  labors  of 
merely  travelers,  artisans,  merchants,  women,  slaves 
and  freed  men  who  happened  to  bo  at  Rome !  Already 
had  Jesus  Christ  disciples  there,  even  in  the  palaces  of 
the  Jewish  princes  who  resided  near  the  imperial  court, 

•  Acts,  xii.  1,  3.  t  Gal.  ii.  7. 

J  See  on  this  subject,  Uie  excellent  dissertation  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Bost; 
"Du  pouvoir  de  :^t.  Pierre  dans  I'Eglise."    Geneva,  1833. 
$  Rom,  J.  11,  13,  14,  15  :  xv.  22. 


INSIGNIFICANCE    OF    SOME    DETAILS.  255 

and  even  among-  the  pagans  who  served  nearest  the  per- 
son of  Nero.  St.  Paul  requests  that  among-  other 
Christians,  they  would  salute  from  him,  first,  "  those  of 
the  household  of  Aristobulous,"  and  secondly,  "  those  of 
the  household  of  Narcissus,  who  were  in  the  Lord." 
Now,  the  first  of  these  great  personages  was  the  brother 
of  Agrippa  the  great,  and  of  the  impure  Herodias ;  the 
second  was  the  powerful  favorite  of  the  emperor  Clau- 
dius. Agrippina  did  not  cause  his  death,  until  the  close 
of  the  year  54. 

Ah  !  let  every  one  who  calls  himself  a  Christian,  re- 
nounce for  ever,  those  rash  sj^stems,  in  which  man  lifts 
himself  against  the  words  of  the  Scriptures,  to  dispute 
their  propriety  ;  in  which  he  dares  to  take  away  from 
God's  Bible  such  a  passage,  such  a  sentence,  to  make 
of  it  (at  least  as  to  that  passage  or  that  sentence,)  a  hu- 
man Bible ;  and  in  which  he  makes  himself  responsi- 
ble likewise  for  all  the  rashness  of  the  boldest  scholars, 
v/ho  imitate  in  respect  to  a  whole  book,  his  treatment 
of  a  single  verse.  What  idea  has  he  of  the  sacred 
writers,  when  he  imagines  them  capable  of  the  gross 
folly  of  mingling  their  ov.-n  oracles  with  the  oracles  of 
the  Almighty '?  We  recollect  an  insane  man,  a  pen- 
sioner of  our  hospitals,  whose  hand-writing  was  still  so 
good,  that  a  minister  of  Geneva  employed  him  to  tran- 
scribe his  sermons.  Conceive  of  the  confusion  of  the 
minister,  w^icn  in  receiving  his  manuscripts,  he  found 
(that  this  unfortunate  man  had  imagined  he  could  en- 
rich every  page  by  adding  his  own  thoughts.  Yet  the 
distance  between  a  lunatic  and  a  minister,  be  he  holy  as 
Daniel,  and  sublime  as  Isaiah,  is  less  than  between 
Daniel  or  Isaiah  and  Eternal  Wisdom  ! 


256  EVASIONS. 

Arrived  then,  thus  far,  we  would,  before  proceeding 
any  farther,  recommend  to  our  readers,  to  observe  in 
using  sacred  criticism,  three  precautions,  the  importance 
and  necessity  of  which,  the  doctrine  of  inspiration  should 
make  them  feel 


CHAPTER  IV. 

OP  THE  USE  OF  SACRED  CRITICISM,  IN  ITS  RELA- 
TIONS TO  THEOPNEUSTY. 

We  would  be  understood.  Far  from  us  be  the 
thought  of  casting  the  least  disparagement  on  the  labors 
of  this  useful  science !  We  honor  them,  on  the  con- 
trary ;  we  call  them  necessary ;  we  study  them ;  we 
consider  all  the  ministers  of  the  gospel  bound  to  know 
them  ;  and  we  believe  that  the  Christian  church  owes 
them  the  highest  gratitude.  Sacred  criticism  is  a  noble 
science.  It  is  so  by  its  object :  to  study  the  history  of 
the  sacred  text,  its  canons,  its  manuscripts,  its  versions, 
its  witnesses  and  its  innumerable  quoters  ; — it  is  so  by 
its  services:  how  many  triumphs  gained  over  infidelity, 
how  many  objections  put  to  silence,  how  many  miserable 
doubts  for  ever  dissipated ! — it  is  so  by  its  history :  how 
many  eminent  men  have  consecrated  to  it  either  the 
labors  of  a  pious  life,  or  the  powers  of  the  finest  genius  ! 
— it  is  so,  finally,  by  its  immense  labors,  which  no  one 
perhaps  can  estimate,  if  he  has  not  studied  it. 

God  preserve  us  then  from  ever  opposing  faith  to 
science ;  faith,  which  lives  upon  the  truth,  to  science 
which  seeks  it ;  faith,  which  goes  directly  to  the  hand 
of  God  to  seize  it,  to  science  which  seeks  it  more  indi- 
rectly elsewhere,  and  which  often  finds  it !  Every 
thing  that  is  true  in  one  place,  is  in  preestablished  har- 
mony with  that  which  is  true  in  another  and  higher 
place.  Faith  knows  then  at  once,  and  before  having 
seen  any  thing,  that  every  truth  of  science  will  be  in 
22* 


258  SACRED   CRITICISM. 

harmony  with  its  testimony.  If  then,  every  true  science, 
whatever,  is  always  the  friend  of  faith,  sacred  criticism 
is  more  than  its  friend ;  it  is  almost  its  relative.  But 
if  it  is  honorable,  useful,  necessary,  it  is  all  that,  only 
so  long  as  it  remains  true,  and  keeps  its  place.  So  far 
as  it  does  not  abandon  the  sphere  assigned  it,  it  is  worthy 
of  our  respect ;  but  as  soon  as  it  wanders,  it  must  be  re- 
strained ;  it  is  then  no  more  a  science,  it  is  a  crazy  divi- 
nation. Now,  as  it  has  three  temptations  to  quit  this 
sphere,  we  therefore  desire  to  recommend  here  three 
precautions  to  the  young  men  who  study  it. 

SECTION  I. 

Sacred  Crilidsm  is  a  Scholar,  and  not  a  Judge. 

In  the  first  place,  critical  science  is  no  longer  in  its 
own  place,  when,  instead  of  being  a  scholar,  it  wishes 
to  be  a  judge  ;  when,  in  place  of  collecting  the  divine 
oracles,  it  composes  them,  decomposes  them,  canonizes 
them,  uncanonizes  them ;  and  when  it  makes  itself 
oracular  !  Then  it  tends  to  nothing  less  than  to  over- 
throw faith  from  its  foundation.  This  we  are  going 
to  show. 

Employ  your  reason,  your  time  and  all  your  intel- 
lectual resources  to  assure  yourself  if  the  book  which  is 
put  into  your  hands,  under  the  name  of  the  Bible,  con- 
tains in  fact  the  very  oracles  of  God,  whose  first  de- 
posite  was  confided,  under  the  divine  providence,  to  the 
Jews  ;*  and  of  which  the  second  deposite,  under  the 
same  guardianship,  was  remitted  to  the  universal  church 
from  the  apostolic  times.  Assure  yourself  then,  whe- 
ther this  book  is  authentic,  and  whether  the  copyists  have 

*  Romans  iii.  1,2. 


SACRED    CRITICISM    A    SCHOLAR.  259 

not  altered  it.  All  this  labor  is  legitimate,  rational, 
honorable  ;  it  has  been  abundantly  done  by  others  be- 
fore you  ;  but  if  the  investigations  of  others  have  not 
satisfied  you,  resume  them,  pursue  them,  instruct  us ; 
and  all  the  churches  of  God  will  thank  you  for  it.  But 
after  all  this  labor,  when  you  have  well  established  that 
the  Bible  is  an  authentic  book,  when  science  and  reason 
have  clearly  showed  you  that  the  unquestionable  seals 
of  the  Almighty  God  are  attached  to  it;  and  that  He 
has  there  placed  his  divine  signature  ;  then  hear  what 
science  and  reason  loudly  proclaim  to  us  ;  then,  sons  of 
men,  hear  God  ,  then,  siirsum  oculi,  flexi  jjoplites,  sur- 
sum  corda  !  then,  bow  the  knee  !  lift  the  heart  on  high, 
in  reverence,  and  in  humiliation !  Then  science  and 
reason  have  no  longer  to  judge,  but  to  receive  ;  no 
longer  to  pronounce  sentence,  but  to  understand.  It 
is  stiil  a  task,  and  it  is  a  science,  if  you  please ;  but  it  is 
no  more  the  same  ;  it  is  the  science  of  understanding 
and  of  submitting. 

But  if,  on  the  contrary,  after  receiving  the  Bible  as 
an  authentic  book,  your  wisdom  pretends  to  constitute 
itself  the  judge  of  its  contents  ;  if,  from  this  book,  which 
calls  itself  inspired,  and  which  declares  that  it  will  judge 
vou  yourself  at  the  last  da}'-,  it  dares  to  retrench  anv 
thing  ;  if,  sitting,  as  the  angels  in  the  last  judgment,* 
to  draw  up  the  book  of  God  on  the  banks  of  science,  to 
gather  the  good  into  its  vessels,  and  to  cast  away  the 
bad,  it  pretends  there  to  distinguish  the  thought  of  God 
from  that  of  man  ;  if,  for  example,  to  cite  only  one  case 
of  a  thousand,  it  dares  to  deny,  with  Michaelis,  that  the 
first  two  chapters  of  Saint  Matthew  are  from  God,  be- 
cause it  does  not  approve  their  Scriptural  quotations ; 

•  Matthew  xiii.  48. 


260  SACRED    CPcITICISM. 

then,  to  deny  the  inspiration  of  Mark,  and  that  of  Luke, 
because  it  has  found  them,  it  saj^s,  contradictory  to  St. 
Matthew  ;*  in  a  word,  if  it  thinks  it  can  subject  the 
book,  recognized  as  authentic,  to  the  outrageous  control 
of  its  ignorance  and  of  its  carnal  sense  ;  then,  we  must 
reprove  it ;  it  is  in  revolt,  it  judges  God.  Then,  it  is 
an  enormity,  reproved  as  much  by  reason  as  by  faith. 
It  is  no  longer  science,  it  is  enchantment ;  it  is  no  more 
progress,  it  is  obscuration. 

Let  us  compare  to  the  wretched  labors  of  theologians 
upon  the  word  of  God,  the  more  reasonable  course  pur- 
sued by  the  naturalists  in  their  studies  upon  his  works. 
Here,  at  least,  we  claim  in  advance  as  an  axiom,  that 
all  the  objects  of  creation  have  ends  full  of  wisdom  and 
harmony.  Here,  science  applies  itself,  not  to  contesting 
these  ends,  this  wisdom,  these  harmonies  ;  but  to  dis- 
cover them.  Here,  what  is  called  progress  in  science, 
is  not  the  temerity  of  controlling  the  works  of  God  ;  it 
is  the  happiness  of  having  investigated  them,  of  having 
better  recognised  their  wonders,  of  having  been  able  to 
propose  them  under  some  new  aspects  to  the  admiration 
of  the  world,  and  of  having  thus  found  new  inducements 
again  to  cry : 

What  grandeur  infinite  ! 
What  divine  harmony 
Results  from  their  accordance ! 

Why  then  should  not  Christians  treat  the  works  of 
God  in  redemption,  as  naturalists  do  the  works  of  God 
in  creation?  why,  if,  among  the  pagans  themselves,  a 
physician,  the  great  Galen,  could  s:iy :  ''that  in  de- 
scribing the  different  parts  of  the  human  body,  he  was 
composing  a  hymn  in  honor  of  the  Creator  of  the  body," 

•  Introduf.tion  to  N.  T.  by  Michaiilis,  t.  2,  p.  17 ;  t.  ].  p.  206  to  214. 


SACRED    CRITICISM    A    SCHOLAR.  261 

why  should  not  the  Christian  comprehend,  that  to  de- 
scribe with  truth,  the  different  parts  of  tlie  word  of  God. 
would  be  always  '-  to  compose  a  hymn  in  honor  of 
him  who  had  made  it?"  Thus  thoug-ht  the  apostolic 
Fathers  ;  thus,  for  example,  the  pious  Irenaeus,  disciple 
of  Polycarp,  the  pupil  of  St.  John  :  "  The  Scriptures," 
said  he,  "  are  perfect.  In  the  Scriptures  let  God  ever 
teach  ;  and  let  man  ever  learn!  it  is  thus  that  from  the 
bosom  of  the  'polyphony  of  their  instructions,  an  admi- 
rable sym,phony  is  heard  in  us  all,  praising  in  hymns 
the  God  who  made  all  things."* 

If  some  one  should  come  to  tell  us  that  there  exists  a 
very  studious  nation,  among  whom  the  science  of  na- 
ture, taking  a  new  direction,  has  commenced  immense 
labors,  for  the  purpose  of  showing  that  there  are  mis- 
takes in  creation  ;  plants  badly  constructed,  animals 
badly  contrived,  organs  badly  adapted  ;  .  .  .  what  would 
you  think  of  this  people  and  of  their  great  labors? 
Would  you  believe  that  science  was  advancing  there  ? 
Would  you  not  rather  say  that  they  were  obscuring  it, 
degrading  it,  and  that  they  were  there  wearying  them- 
selves, learnedly  to  discover  the  art  of  being  ignorant  ? 
Inexplicable  as  the  anatomists  have  found  the  use  of 
the  liver  in  the  human  body,  or  of  the  antennae  in  that 
of  the  insects,  they  have  not  therefore  blamed  nature  ; 
they  have  accused  only  their  own  ignorance  in  regard 
to  it ;  and  they  have  waited.  Why  then,  when  you  do 
not  yet  discover  the  use  of  a  word  in  the  Scriptures, 
would  you  blame  any  other  than  yourself,  and  why 
do  you  not  wait  ? 

*  "Sic,  per  dictionum  multas  voces,  una  consonans  melodia  in  nobis 
sentietur,  laudan.s  hymnis  Deum  qui  fecit  omnia."  According  to  the 
Greek  preserved  by  John  Daniascenus;  6ta  tit;  t:ov  \ilc(7)v  iruyvipoiviai. 
'ill  uvjKpdivov  ni\os  iv  finiv  diadriireTai.    (Adv.  Hiereses,  lib.  ii.  2.  47  ) 


2$2  SACE.ED    CRITICISM, 

This  thought  is  not  new  ;  a  pious  man  expressed  it, 
better  than  we,  sixteen  hundred  years  ago,  and  preached 
it  with  unction  to  the  men  of  his  time.     We  have  found 
ourselves  happy,  whilst  we  were  writing  it,  <o  meet  it 
in  Origen,  (in  the   thirty-ninth  of  his  homilies,)  "  If 
ever  says  he,  in  reading  the  Scriptures,*  thou  happenest 
to  strike  against  a  thought  which  becomes  to  thee  a 
stone  of  stumbling  and  a  rock  of  offence,  accuse  only 
thyself  (u/t/Jj  aeuvToy  ])  do  not  doubt  that  this  stum- 
bling-stone and  this  rock  of  offence  has  a  great  mean- 
ing {s/Ptv  iwriuuTa^)  and  is  to  accomplish  this  promise: 
*  he  that  believeth  in   me,  shall  not  be  confounded. 'f 
Commence  then  by  believing,  and  quickly  thou  shalt 
find,  in  this  imaginary  stumbling-block,  an  abundant 
(ind,  holy  ulilily  \     If  we  are  commanded  not  to  speak 
idle  words,  because  we  must  give  account  of  them  at 
the  last  day,  how  much  more  should  we  think  in  regard 
to  the  prophets  of  God,  that  every  word  proceeding 
from  their  mouth,  had  its  work  to  do  and  its  use  !§     I 
believe  then  that  for  those  who  know  how  to  use  the 
excellence  of  Scripture,  each  one  of  the  letters  written  in 
the  oracles  of  God,  has  its  end  and  its  work  (f  ('/«C'^t«j,) 
even  to  an   iota,  or  tittle  .  .  .  and  as  among  plants, 
there  is  not  one  without  its  virtue  ;  and  as  at  the  same 
lime  it  pertains  only  to  those  who  have  acquired  the 
science  of  botany,  to  be  able  to  tell  us  how  each  one 
ought  to  be  applied  and  prepared,  in  order  to  become 
useful ;  so  also,  whoever  is  a  holy  and,  spiritual  botanist 
of  the   word  of  God   (f(g  Soiavixog  saTiv  6   dying    xul 
nftuuujiito;^)  he,  collecting  each  iota  and  each  element, 
shall  find  the  virtue  of  this  word,  and  shall  recognise 

*  Origeiies  adiimHiitiiis,  Horn,  xxxix,  in  Jeremiah  xliv.  22. 
t  Rom.  jx.  33.  X  WoWiji/  otp.Xet  av  dyiav.    '         §  "EpyariKOv  nv. 


SACRED    CRITICISM    A    SCHOLAR.  263 

that  nothing  in  that  which  was  written,  is  superfluous 
(ort  ovdef  naoilxei.)  Will  you  have  another  compari- 
son ?  Each  member  of  our  body  has  its  function,  for 
which  it  has  been  placed  in  its  position  by  the  great 
Architect.  Yet  it  does  not  pertain  to  every  one  to 
know  their  uses  and  their  powers,  but  only  to  those 
physicians  who  have  studied  anatomy  ...  I  consider 
then  the  Scriptures  as  '  the  collection  of  the  'plants  of 
the  word^  or  as  '  the  perfect  body  of  the  word.^  Bui 
if  you  are  neither  a  botanist  of  the  Scriptures,  nor  an 
anatomist  of  the  prophetic  words,  do  not  imagine  there 
is  in  them  any  thing  superfluous ;  and  when  you  can- 
not find  the  reason  for  what  is  written,  do  not  blame 
the  holy  letters  ;  blame  not  them,  but  yourself  alone 
for  it."*  Thus  spake  Origen  ;  but  we  could  find  simi- 
lar thoughts  in  the  other  Fathers,  and  particularly  in 
Bishop  Irenseus,  nearer  yet  to  the  apostolic  times. f 

At  the  same  time  we  must  again  remark,  this  preten- 
sion to  judge  the  word  of  God,  overthrows  all  the  foun- 
dations of  faith.  It  would  indeed  render  faith  impossi- 
ble in  the  hearts  of  all  those  who  have  the  least  degree 
of  consistency.     This  is  but  too  easily  proved. 

That  a  soul  may  receive  life,  it  must  receive  faith  ; 
that  it  may  have  faith,  it  must  believe  God ;  that  it  may 
believe  God,  it  must  begin  by  renouncing  the  prejudices 
of  its  own  wisdom  concerning  sin,  the  future,  judgment, 
grace,  itself,  the  world,  God,  every  thing.  Has  he  not 
written  ;  that  "  the  natural  man  receiveth  not  the  things 
of  the  Spirit  of  God  ;  for  they  are  foolishness  unto  him; 
neither  can  he  know  them  because  they  are  spiritually 

*  And  he  adds :  Tovto  jxoi  to  Ttpooifitop  kipriTai  Ka66\cKcii,  XP'l'^if^ov  eivat 
dwafisvop  CIS  b\>)u  r/jv  ypd(j)Tiv,  Ivd  irporpaTtoiaiv  ol  QeXovres  npoaex^'v  rfi 
avayvo)aEt,  pnoiv  napanlpncadai  dvc^Lrl^TOi/  Kui  dve\spivvr}rov  ypdjijxa. 

*  'renasus,  Adv.  Hasres,  book  ii.,c.  47 


264  SACRED    CRITICISM. 

discerned."*  The  gospel  then  will  shock  either  his 
reason  or  his  conscience,  or  both.  And  yet  he  must 
submit  to  it  upon  the  testimony  of  God  alone  ;  and  it  is 
only  after  having  thus  received  it,  that  he  will  recognize 
it  as  being  "  the  wisdom  of  God  and  the  power  of  God 
to  every  one  that  believeth."  You  see  that  we  must  be- 
lieve without  seeing  ;  that  is  to  say,  that  the  gospel,  be- 
fore it  has  been  comprehended,  must  confound  our  own 
wisdom,  abase  our  pride,  and  condemn  our  self-right- 
eousness. How  then  could  you  ever  make  it  accepta- 
ble to  men  who  might  be  so  unfortunate  as  to  imitate 
you,  and  who  would,  like  you,  wait  to  have  every  thing 
approved,  in  order  to  receive  every  thing?  Imbued 
with  your  principles,  they  will  impute  to  man  every 
thing  in  the  scriptures  which  shocks  their  carnal  sense. 
They  will  believe  that  they  must  reject  the  apostle's 
prejudice,  concerning  the  consequences  of  Adam's  sin, 
the  Trinity,  expiation,  eternal  punishment,  the  resurrec- 
tion of  the  body,  the  doctrine  of  demons,  election,  the 
gratuitous  justification  of  the  sinner  by  faith,  perhaps 
also  those  concerning  miracles.  How  then,  if  he  has 
the  misfortune  of  doing  as  you  do,  will  a  man  ever  find 
life,  peace  and  joy,  by  means  of  faith  ?  How  could  he, 
like  Abraham,  hope  against  hope?  How  could  he,  a 
miserable  sinner,  ever  believe  himself  saved  ?  He  must 
pass  his  days  in  doctrines,  vague,  vaporous,  uncertain  ; 
and  his  life,  his  peace,  his  love,  his  obedience  must  re- 
main, even  unto  death,  such  as  his  doctrines  !  We  con- 
clude then,  with  this  first  counsel :  make  the  science  of 
criticism  a  scholar  ;  do  not  make  it  a  judge. 

•  1  Cor.  ii.  14,  i.  23. 


SACRED   CRITICISM   A   HISTORUN,  265 

SECTION  11. 

Let  Sacred  Criticism  be  a  Historian^  and  not  a  Conjurer. 

There  is,  in  regard  to  the  inspiration  of  the  Scrip- 
tures, another  precaution,  no  less  important  for  us  in 
employing  this  science. 

The  work  of  sacred  criticism  is  to  gather  facts  con- 
cerning the  Scriptures  ;  do  not  permit  it  to  lead  you  into 
vain  hypotheses.  It  would  thus  do  you  much  harm. 
It  ought  to  be  a  historian  ;  do  not  make  it  a  prophet. 
When  it  divines,  do  not  listen  to  it,  turn  the  back  upon 
it,  for  it  would  make  you  lose  your  time  and  more  than 
your  time.  Now,  the  safeguard  of  the  faithful,  here,  is 
again,  the  doctrine  of  inspiration,  such  as  we  have  de- 
scribed it ;  we  mean,  the  inspiration  not  of  the  men,  but 
of  the  book. 

All  Scripture  is  given  by  inspiration  of  God :  thus 
the  authentic  book  of  the  Scriptures  declares  to  us.  "  But 
what  was  passing  in  the  understanding  and  conscience 
of  the  sacred  writer  ?"  On  that  the  Bible  is  silent,  and 
that  we  shall  never  be  required  to  know.  The  misun- 
derstanding of  this  great  principle  has  occasioned  an  im- 
mense loss  both  of  time  and  of  words.  The  Scriptures 
are  inspired,  whether  the  author  had  or  had  not  the  pre- 
vious knowledge  of  that  which  God  was  about  to  cause 
him  to  write.  Let  any  one  then,  study,  in  each  book  of 
the  Bible,  th'e  peculiarities  of  its  style,  of  its  language, 
of  its  reasonings,  and  all  the  circumstances  of  its  sacred 
writer ;  Ave  could  see  nothing  but  good  in  these  re- 
searches ;  they  are  useful,  legitimate,  respectful ;  and 
that  is  truly  science.  Let  him  there  have  sought,  by 
these  very  characters,  to  fix  their  date ;  and  determine 
23 


266  SACRED    CRITICISM. 

the  occasion  of  their  being  written  ;  we  should  yet  see 
only  that  which  is  instructive  and  proper  in  such  a  study. 
It  may  be  useful,  for  example,  to  know  that  it  was  un- 
der Nero  that  Paul  wrote  to  the  Jews  ;*  ••  Let  every 
soul  be  subject  unto  the  higher  powers."  It  may  be 
well  to  know  that  St.  Peter  had  been  married  more  than 
twenty-three  years,  when  St.  Paul  reminded  the  Corin- 
thians,t  that  this  apostle  (the  first  of  the  popes,  as  some 
call  him,)  was  still  leading  his  wife  about  with  him  in 
all  his  apostolical  journeys,  and  that  the  other  apostles. 
and  that  even  St.  James  (reputed  the  first  of  the  pillars 
of  the  church,)  J  was  doing  the  same  thing.  All  this  is 
still  science.  We  value  highly,  for  the  church  of  God, 
every  labor  which  makes  her  understand  a  passage  bet- 
ter :  yes,  were  it  only  one  passage,  one  single  word  of 
the  holy  Scriptures.  But  when  you  pass  on  to  crude 
hypotheses  ;  when  you  embrace  a  thousand  conjectures 
concerning  the  sacred  writers,  to  make  their  word  de- 
pend on  the  hazard  of  their  presumed  circumstances,  in- 
stead of  regarding  their  circumstances  as  prepared  and 
chosen  of  God  in  reference  to  their  ministry ;  when  yon 
subordinate  the  nature,  the  abundance  or  brevity  of  these 
instructions  to  the  more  or  less  fortunate  concurrence  of 
their  ignorance  or  of  their  recollections  : — this  is  to  do 
grade  inspiration,  and  to  bring  down  the  character  of 
the  word  of  God  ;  it  is  to  lay  deep  the  foundations  of 
infidelity  ;  it  is  to  forget  that  "  men  of  God  spake  as 
they  were  moved  [(fegouefoi)  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  not 
in  the  words  which  man's  wisdom  teacheth,  but  which 
the  Holy  Ghost  teacheth. "§ 

It  has  been  asked ;  "  did  the  Evangelists  read  each 

*  Rom.  xiii.  1.  1 1  Cor.  ix.  5. 

i  Gal.  ii.  9.  §  1  Cor.  ii.  13 ;  1  Pet.  i.  21. 


SACRED    CRITICISM    A    HISTORIAN.  267 

Other's  writings?"  And  what  is  that  to  me,  if  they 
were  all  "  moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost ;''  and  if,  like  the 
Thessalonians,  I  receive  their  book,  ''not  as  the  word 
of  man,  but  as  it  is,  in  truth,  the  word  of  God."  Let 
this  question  be  proposed  in  its  place,  it  may  be  entirely 
innocent ;  but  it  is  so  no  longer  when  it  is  discussed  as 
it  has  been,  and  when  so  much  importance  is  attached 
to  it.  Can  the  solution  of  it  throw  light  on  one  single 
passage  of  the  sacred  books,  and  establish  their  truths 
more  firmly  ?     We  do  not  believe  that  it  can. 

When  we  hear  it  asked,  (as  Dr.  Mill*  and  Professor 
Hugt  do  ;  and  as  Dr.  LardnerJ  and  Professor  Michae- 
lis§  do  not  ask  ;)  whether  St.  John  had  read  the  Gospels 
of  the  other  three ;  if  St.  Mark  and  St.  Luke  had  read 
the  Gospel  of  St.  Matthew  before  writing  their  own  ; 
when  we  hear  it  asked,  whether  the  Evangelists  did 
any  thing  more  than  describe  with  discernment,  the 
most  important  portions  of  oral  traditions,  (as  Dr. 
Gieseler  does;||)  when  we  see  great  volumes  written 
upon  these  questions,  to  attack  or  defend  these  systems, 
as  if  faith  and  even  science  were  truly  interested  in  it, 
and  as  if  the  answers  were  very  important  to  the  Chris- 
tian Church  ;  when  we  hear  it  affirmed  that  the  first 
three  Evangelists  had  consulted  some  original  docu- 
ment now  lost ;  Greek,  according  to  some  :  Hebrew, 
according  to  others  ;  (as  John  Le  Clerc  at  first  dreamed, 
and  as  Kopp,  Michaelis,  Lessing,  Niemeger,  Eichhorn, 
and  others,!^  have  imagined  sixty  years  after  him;) 
when  we  see  men  plunging  still  farther  into  this  ro- 

•  Millii  Prole?.  §108. 

t  Einleilnnp'indieSchriften  des  N.  Testnm.     Stntorart.  1821. 

J  Vol.  vi.  pages  220,  250.  §  Introd.  &-c.  torn.  1.  p-  112,  129. 

9  Historisch-Kr  tis(  hfr  Versuch  &c.  Minden,  1818. 

1  Home's  Introduction,  vol.  ii.  p.  443.  edit.  181S. 


268  SACRED    CRITICISM. 

mantic  field ;  when  we  see  them  reaching  the  compli- 
cated drama  of  the  Bishop  of  Landafi]*  with  his  first 
Hebrew  historical  document,  his  second  Hebrew  dog- 
matic document,  his  third  Greek  document,  (a  transla- 
tion of  the  first ;)  then  his  documents  of  the  second 
class,  formed  by  the  translation  of  Luke,  and  Mark,  and 
Matthew,  which  finally  reduces  the  sources  to  seven, 
\vithout  counting  three  others,  peculiar  to  St.  Luke  and 
St.  Mark  ;  or  even,  again,  when  we  see  Mr.  Veysie,+ 
in  England,  and  Dr.  Gieseler,  in  Germany,  deriving 
either  the  first  three  Gospels,  or  the  four  Gospels,  from 
apocryphal  histories  previously  circulated  among  the 
Christian  churches  ;  when  we  see  the  first  of  these 
Doctors  determining,  that  Mark  has  copied  them  with  a 
more  literal  exactness  than  Luke,  on  account,  they  say, 
of  his  ignorance  of  the  Greek  ;  while  Matthew's  Gos- 
pel, written  at  first  in  Hebrew,  must,  doubtless,  have 
been  translated  afterward  into  Greek,  by  a  person  Avho 
modified  it,  to  make  it  correspond  with  Mark  and  Luke, 
and,  finally,  gave  it  to  us  as  we  have  it ;  when  we  see 
these  systems  exhibited,  not  in  a  few  phrases,  in  the  in- 
dulgence of  a  light  curiosity,  but  so  many  and  such 
great  volumes  written  upon  them,  as  if  they  involved 
the  interests  of  the  kingdom  of  God  ;  oh  !  we  must  say 
it,  we  feel,  in  the  view  of  all  such  science,  a  sentiment 
profoundly  painful.  But,  after  all,  is  that  science?  Is 
judicial  astrology  a  science?  No  ;  and  these  men  are 
no  longer  philosophers  :  they  have  abandoned  facts  ; 
they  prophesy  the  history  of  the  past ;  they  are,  alas  ! 
the  astrologers  of  theology.  It  is  believed,  in  astrono- 
my, that  a  book  of  observations  upon  the  feeblest  satel- 

*  Bishop  Marsh'8  Michaelia,  vol.  iii.  part  ii.  p.  3C1. 
t  Veysie's  Examination,  p.  56. 


SACRED    CRITICISM    A    HISTORIAN..  269 

lite  discovered  near  Uranus,  or  upon  the  discovery  of 
a  second  parallax  found  accompanying  some  star,  or 
upon  a  simple  spot  on  the  moon,  is  a  precious 
acquisition  to  science  ,  whereas,  all  the  writings  of 
Count  Boulainvilliers,  and  three  hundred  volumes  upon 
the  barbaric  sphere,  upon  the  influences,  the  aspects,  or 
the  horoscopes  of  the  seven  planetary  bodies,  can  be 
only  folly  and  a  vain  encumbrance  to  science.  Thus 
we  shall  esteem  very  highly,  in  the  studies  of  sacred 
criticism,  every  thing  which  can  throw  any  additional 
light  upon  the  least  passage  of  the  Scriptures  ;  but  what 
good  can  these  crude  hypotheses  ever  effect?  They 
turn  you  from  the  luminous  roads  of  science  as  well  as 
of  faith  ;  the  mind,  in  pursuing  them,  is  wearied  in  the 
chase  of  vanity  !  Vain  and  boisterous  labor  of  vapor- 
ous conjectures  borne  upon  the  clouds  !  No  good  can 
come  of  these  wretched  studies,  which  teach  us  to  doubt, 
where  God  teaches  us  to  believe  !  '•  Who  is  he,  saith 
the  Lord,  that  darkeneth  the  counsels  of  the  Most  High, 
by  words  without  knowh  dge  ?" 

Would  to  God  ind^-ed  that  there  were  nothing  more 
in  these  studies  than  vain  fantasies  and  an  enormous 
loss  of  time  !  But  it  is  worse  than  the  dissipation  of 
time  :  faith  is  engulphed  in  them  ;  the  mental  eye  is 
fascinated  by  them,  and  they  turn  away  our  studious 
youth  from  hearing  the  first  and  great  author  of  the 
Scriptures.  It  is  evident  that  these  idle  researches  can 
proceed  only  from  a  want  of  faith  in  the  inspiration  of 
the  Scriptures.  Admit  inspiration  for  a  moment ;  admit 
that  Jesus  Christ  has  given  his  apostles  the  ttwj  xul  it, 
ike  how  and  the  what  of  that  which  they  were  to  write; 
admit  that  God  has  made  his  apostles  recount  the  life 
of  Jesus  Christ,  as  he  has  made  them  describe  his  ses- 
23* 


270  SACRED   CRITICISM. 

sion  at  the  right  hand  of  God  ;  and  immediately  you 
will  perceive  that  all  these  hypotheses  are  reduced  to 
nothing.  Not  only  do  they  teach  you  nothing,  and  can 
teach  you  nothing ;  but  they  change  the  very  exercise 
of  your  faith  ;  they  sap  by  degrees  the  doctrine  of  in- 
spiration ;  they  indirectly  enfeeble  the  testimony  of 
God,  its  certainty,  its  perfection  ;  they  turn  your  pious 
thoughts  from  their  true  direction,  they  mislead  our 
youth  who  were  seeking  the  living  waters  at  the  well 
of  the  Scriptures,  and  leave  them  thirsting  in  the  sandy 
deserts,  far  from  the  fountains  that  spring  up  to  life 
eternal.  What  do  they  find  there  after  all  ?  Broken 
cisterns,  clouds  without  water ;  or  at  least  perhaps, 
those  fantastic  streams  which  the  sun  of  vain  glory  will 
paint  for  a  few  days,  like  a  deceitful  mirage  in  the  des- 
erts of  this  world. 

What  should  we  think  of  a  theologian  who  should 
pretend  that  he  was  going  to  seek  in  the  instructions 
of  Joseph  the  carpenter,  or  in  the  lessons  of  the  schools 
of  Nazareth,  the  origin  of  the  discourses  of  Jesus  Christ, 
of  his  doctrines  and  of  his  parables  ?  Idle  and  perni- 
cious, you  would  exclaim. — But,  the  same  must  be. 
said  of  all  those  conjuring  systems  which  wish  to  ac- 
count to  us  for  the  construction  of  the  Scriptures,  with- 
out supernatural  aid.  Idle  and  pernicious  ;  say  we, — 
admit  inspiration,  and  all  this  labor  vanishes  as  a  foolish 
fantasy.  The  Scriptures  are  the  word  of  God  ;  they 
are  dictated  by  him  ;  and  we  know  that  "  prophecy 
came  not  in  old  time  by  the  will  of  man  ;  but  holy  men 
of  God  spake  as  they  were  moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost."* 
The  history  of  the  nephew  of  St.  Paul  warning  his  un- 
cle in  the  prison  of  Antonias,  is  inspired  of  God,  al- 
•  2  Peter  i.  21. 


SACRED    CRITICISM   A   HISTORIAN.  271 

though  Luke  may  have  heard  it  twenty  times  from  the 
mouth  of  the  apostle,  before  having-  received  it  from  the 
Holy  Spirit ;  this  history  is  as  fully  inspired  as  that  of 
the  invisible  angel,  who  was  sent  from  God  to  smite  the 
king  of  the  Jews  upon  his  throne,  in  the  city  of  Csesarea. 
The  history  of  the  striped  and  spotted  sheep  of  Jacob  is 
as  much  dictated  by  God,  as  the  history  of  the  creation 
of  the  heavens  and  of  the  earth.  The  history  of  the  fall 
of  Ananias  and  of  Sapphira  is  as  inspired  as  that  of  Sa- 
tan and  his  angels. 

Yes  ;  without  doubt,  the  apostles  consulted  one  com- 
mon document ;  but  this  document,  as  bishop  Gleig  has 
well  expressed  it,*  "  is  no  other  than  the  very  preaching 
and  life  of  our  divine  Savior."     Behold  their  prototype. 

When  therefore  you  hear  it  asked,  from  what  docu- 
ments Matthew  could  have  drawn  his  history  of  the 
birth  of  Jesus  Christ,  Luke  that  of  his  first  years,  Paul 
that  of  the  apparition  of  the  Savior  to  James,  or  the 
words  of  the  Savior  upon  the  blessedness  of  giving, 
Hosea  the  tears  of  Jacob,  and  Jude  the  prophecy  of 
Enoch,  or  the  contention  of  Michael  for  the  body  of 
Moses,  answer  :  they  have  drawn  them  from  the  same 
•  urce  whence  Moses  learned  the  creation  of  the  hea- 
vens and  the  earth.  "  The  Holy  Spirit,"  says  the  illus- 
trious Claude,  "  has  employed  the  pen  of  the  evangelist 
and  apostles,  of  Moses  and  the  prophets  ;  he  has  fur- 
nished the  occasions  of  writing  ;  he  has  given  these 
both  the  will  and  the  power  to  do  so  ;  the  matter,  the 
order,  the  arrangement,  the  expressions  are  by  his  im- 
mediate inspiration,  and  by  his  direction." 

We  have  just  said  that  a  sound  doctrine  of  inspiration 

•  Remarks  on  Michaelis,  Introd.  to  N.  T,  p.  32,  et  seq. ;— Home's  introd. 
ii.  p.  458,  ed.  1818. 


272  SACRED   CRITICISM 

would  shelter  our  studious  youth  from  the  excessive 
aberrations  of  modern  criticism,  at  the  same  time  that 
they  might  draw  from  this  noble  science,  all  the  benefits 
that  it  can  impart.  The  first  of  these  errors,  we  have 
already  said,  is  to  pretend  to  judge  the  Scriptures,  after 
having  received  the  collection  as  authentic.  The  se- 
cond is,  to  surrender  ourselves  to  dangerous  specula- 
tions concerning  the  sacred  books.  But  a  third  reflec- 
tion still  remains  to  be  made  on  the  relation  of  science 
to  the  great  question  which  occupies  us. 

SECTION  III. 

Sacred  Criticism  is  not  the  God^hUthe  Door-Keeper of  tlie  Temple. 

This  reflection  presents  itself  at  once  under  the  form 
of  advice  and  of  argument ;  we  shall  indulge  in  the  ad- 
vice, only  as  it  leads  to  the  argument ;  for  we  do  not 
forget  that  our  task,  in  this  book,  is  to  establish  Divine 
inspiration,  and  not  to  preach  it. 

First ;  the  counsel. 

Science  is  a  door-keeper,  who  conducts  you  to  the 
temple  of  the  Scriptures  ,  never  forget  then,  that  she  is 
not  their  God,  and  that  her  dwelling-house  is  not  the 
temple.  In  other  terms,  beware  that  you  do  not  stop  at 
sacred  criticism,  even  in  reference  to  the  mere  scie^nce 
of  Theology  ;  it  will  leave  you  in  the  street,  for  it  never 
crossed  the  threshold  of  the  temple. 

Now;  the  argument.  If  you  really  enter  into  the 
temple  of  the  Scriptures,  you  will  not  only  find  written 
there  with  the  hand  of  God,  upon  all  the  walls,  that 
God  fills  it.  and  that  he  is  universally  there ;  but  you 
will  also  find  the  proof  of  it  in  your  own  experience ; 
you  will  see  it  in  every  part ;  you  will  feel  it  through- 


THE  DOOR-KEEPER  OF  THE  TEMPLE.       273 

out.  In  Other  words  ;  when  we  read  the  oracles  of 
God  with  care,  we  find  there,  not  only  frequent  declara- 
tions of  their  entire  theopneusty,  but  we  also  receive  in 
our  understanding  and  in  our  heart,  by  unexpected 
flashes,  often  from  a  single  verse,  or  by  the  power  of  a 
single  word,  a  profound  conviction  of  the  divinity  which 
is  imprinted  on  every  part  of  them. 

As  to  the  counsel,  it  must  not  be  imagined  that  we 
have  given  it  for  the  purpose  of  discrediting  the  investi- 
gations of  science  ;  we  offer  it,  on  the  contrary,  for  their 
advancement  and  perfection.  For,  it  too  often  happens, 
that  the  prolonged  study  of  the  externals  of  the  sacred 
book,  of  its  history,  of  its  manuscripts,  of  its  versions, 
of  Its  language,  so  absorbs  the  attention  of  those  who 
yield  themselves  to  it,  that  they  become  inattentive  to  its 
most  intimate  characteristics,  to  its  sense,  to  its  design, 
to  the  moral  power  which  it  developes,  to  the  beauties 
revealed  in  it,  to  the  life  diffused  through  it.  And  as 
there  exist  necessary  relations  between  these  charac- 
teristics and  the  exterior  forms,  two  great  evils  result 
from  these  studies,  to  him  who  pursues  them. 

As  man,  he  stifles  his  spiritual  life,  and  compromises 
his  eternal  life  by  them.  But  it  is  not  of  this  evil  that 
we  speak  in  these  pages.  As  a  scholar,  he  compro- 
mises his  science,  and  by  these  studies  renders  himself 
incapable  of  a  sound  appreciation  of  the  very  objects  of 
that  science.  It  remains  incoherent,  hime,  and  conse- 
quently straitened  and  groveling.  Can  he  know  the 
temple  ?  He  has  seen  but  its  stones  ;  he  knows  nothing 
of  the  Shechinah  !  Can  he  comprehend  the  types  ? 
He  does  not  conceive  of  their  antetype  ;  he  has  seen 
nothing  but  altars,  sheep,  knives,  utensils,  blood,  fire, 
incense,  costumes  and  ceremonies  ;  he  has  not  seen  the 


274  SACRED    CRITICISM 

redemption  of  the  world  ;  the  future,  the  heaven,  the 
glory  of  Jesus  Christ !  And  in  this  condition,  he  has 
not  been  able  to  seize  even  the  relations  which  these  ex- 
ternal objects  bear  to  one  another  ;  because  he  has  not 
understood  their  harmony  with  the  whole. 

A  learned  man  without  faith,  in  the  days  of  Noah, 
who  might  have  studied  the  structure  of  the  ark,  would 
not  only  have  perished  in  the  deluge,  but  he  would  also 
have  remained  in  ignorance  of  a  great  portion  of  the 
very  objects  which  he  pretended  to  understand. 

Imagine  a  Roman  traveler  in  the  days  of  Pompey 
the  Great,  attempting  to  describe  Jerusalem  and  the 
temple.  Having  arrived  in  the  city  on  the  Sabbath,  he 
goes  directly  to  the  holy  place  with  his  guide ;  he 
walks  around  it;  he  admires  its  enormous  stones;  he 
measures  its  porticoes  ;  makes  inquiries  about  its  an- 
tiquity, its  architects  ;  he  passes  its  gigantic  gates, 
opened  every  day  at  sunrise,  and  shut  at  mid-day  by 
two  hundred  men  ;  he  sees  the  Levites  and  the  singers 
in  thousands,  proceeding  to  the  temple  in  order,  arrayed 
in  their  linen  garments.  In  the  interior,  the  sons  of 
Aaron  clothed  in  their  sacred  robes,  are  performing 
their  rites  ;  while  the  psalms  of  the  royal  prophet  re- 
sound under  the  vaulted  ceiling,  and  thousands  of  singers, 
accompanied  by  instruments,  respond  to  each  other  in 
their  sublime  antiphonies  ;  whilst  the  law  is  read,  the 
Avord  is  preached,  and  the  souls  who  wait  for  the  conso- 
lation of  Israel,  soar  with  delight  to  the  invisible  gran- 
deurs, and  thrill  at  the  thought  of  that  God,  with  whom 
is  abundant  redemption  ;  whilst  the  aged  Simeons  lift 
their  thoughts  to  that  glorious  salvation  constantly 
longed  for ;  whilst  more  than  one  publican  is  smiling 
his  breast,  and  returning  to  his  house  justified  ;  whilst 


rHE  DOOR-KEEPER.  OF  THE  TEMPLE.       275 

more  than  one  young  heart  is  consecrating-  itself  to 
God,  like  Nathanael ;  and  whilst  more  than  one  poor 
widow,  under  the  impulse  of  holy  zeal,  is  casting  her 
two  mites  into  the  treasury  of  God  ;  whilst  so  many 
prayers,  invisible  but  ardent,  are  mounting  towards  hea- 
ven, ....  what  is  this  traveler  doing  ? — he  is  count- 
ing the  columns,  admiring  the  pavements,  measuring 
the  courts,  examining  the  assembly,  drawing  the  altar 
of  incense,  the  candlestick,  the  table  of  shew-bread,  the 
golden  censer  ;  he  then  goes  out,  mounts  to  the  battle- 
ments of  the  fortress,  descends  to  the  Xystus  or  to  the 
Cedron,  traverses  the  walls,  all  the  while,  counting  his 
steps,  returns  to  his  hotel,  to  digest  his  observations  and 
prepare  his  book.  He  may  boast,  indeed,  of  having 
seen  the  people,  the  worship  and  the  temple  of  the  He- 
brewff ;  he  will  publish  his  volume  ;  and  his  numerous 
readers  will  open  it  for  information  :  and  yet  even  in 
relation  to  the  very  information  he  wished  to  impart, 
how  many  false  judgments  will  he  have  made  ;  how 
many  errors  will  those  who  are  worshipping  in  the  tem- 
ple, be  able  to  detect  in  it ! 

Listen  then  to  our  counsel,  in  regard  to  the  interests 
of  your  own  science  merely.  On  account  of  the  indis- 
pensable relations  which  exist  between  the  eternal  ends 
of  the  word  of  God  and  its  external  forms,  you  cannot 
form  a  solid  judgment  of  the  latter,  without  taking  cog- 
nizance of  the  former. 

If  you  desired  to  learn  the  character  of  a  physician, 
you  would  do  well  to  inform  yourself  of  his  country,  of 
his  studies,  of  the  univprsities  which  he  has  attended, 
and  of  his  certificates  of  recommendation  ;  but,  if  on  the 
first  visit,  he  should  at  once  tell  you  all  your  complaints  ; 
if  he  should  awaken  impressions  and  a  sense  of  miseries, 


276  SACRED   CRITICISM 

until  then  vaguely  felt,  but  whose  secret  reality  you 
should  recognise,  the  moment  he  defined  them ;  and  if, 
above  all,  he  should  finally  make  you  take  the  only 
remedy  which  ever  could  have  relieved  you  ;  oh  !  then 
would  not  such  an  experience  tell  you  much  more  about 
him,  than  his  diploma? 

This  then,  is  the  counsel  which  we  venture  to  give, 
to  all  those  of  our  readers  who  have  paid  any  attention 
to  sacred  criticism.  Read  the  Bible,  study  the  Bible  in 
itself  and  for  itself;  ask  it,  if  you  please,  where  it  took 
its  degrees,  and  in  what  school  its  writers  studied  ;  but 
come  to  its  consultations,  like  a  patient  longing  to  be 
healed ;  bestow  as  much  care  upon  acquiring  the  expe- 
rience of  its  words  as  you  have  given  to  the  study  of  its 
diplomas,  of  its  language  and  of  its  history ;  then  you 
shall  be  not  only  healed  (which  does  not  concern  our 
present  investigation,)  but  you  shall  be  enlightened. 
"  He  that  healed  me,  the  same  said  unto  me,  take  up 
thy  bed  and  walk.  Whether  he  be  a  sinner,  I  know 
not ;  only  one  thing  I  know  ;  that  whereas  I  was 
blind,  I  now  see."* 

The  author  would  here  relate,  what  a  thirst  he  had 
for  apologetic  writings,  during  the  early  stages  of  his 
studies  ;  how  Abbadie,  Leslie,  Huet,  Turretin,  Grotius, 
Littleton,  Jennings,  Reinhardt  and  Chalmers,  were  his 
habitual  reading ;  and  how,  harassed  by  a  thousand 
doubts,  he  found  no  relief,  no  conviction  nor  satisfaction 
in  any  thing  but  the  Bible  itself  It  bears  witness  to  it- 
self, not  only  by  its  assertions,  but  by  its  effects  ;  as  the 
light,  as  the  heat,  as  life,  as  health  ;  for  it  carries  in  its 
beams,  health,  life,  heat,  light.  You  might  prove  to 
me,  by  sound  calculations,  that  at  this  moment  the  sun 

•  John  i.x.  25. 


THE  DOOR-KEEPER.  OF  THE  TEMPLE.       277 

should  be  upon  the  horizon;  but  what  need  have  I  of 
youY  proofs,  when  my  eye  beholds  it,  and  its  rays  are 
bathing  and  quickening-  me? 

Read  the  Bible  then  ;  complete  your  science,  arrange 
It.  It  shall  convince  you  ;  it  shall  tell  you  whether  the 
Biule  comes  from  God.  And  when  you  shall  have 
heaid  it  in  a  voice  which  casts  down  with  power,  or 
which  lifts  up  with  tenderness,  a  voice  sometimes  more 
powerful  than  the  sound  of  mighty  waters,  sometimes 
sweet  and  gentle,  as  that  which  Elijah  heard  whisper- 
ing ;  "  the  Lord  God,  merciful  and  gracious,  long-suf- 
fering, slow  to  anger,  the  God  of  consolation,  the  God 
forgiving  iniquity,  transgression  and  sin  ;"  oh  then,  we 
venture  to  predict,  you  will  feel  that  the  single  perusal 
of  a  psalm,  of  a  narrative,  of  a  precept,  of  a  verse,  of  a 
word  in  a  verse,  will  instantly  prove  to  you  more  pow- 
erfully the  divine  inspiration  of  all  the  Scriptures,  than 
all  the  most  eloquent  and  most  solid  reasonings  of 
learned  men  or  of  books  have  before  done.  Then  you 
shall  see,  you  shall  hear,  you  shall  feel  that  God  is 
there  in  every  part ;  then  you  will  not  ask  it  any  more, 
whether  it  is  all  inspired  :  for  you  will  feel  it  to  be  the 
powerful  and  efficacious  discerner  of  the  thoughts  and 
intents  of  the  heart,  sharper  than  any  two-edged  sword, 
piercing  even  to  the  dividing  asunder  of  the  soul  and  the 
spirit,  and  the  joints  and  the  marrow  ;  bringing  up  your 
{ears  from  a  deep  and  unknown  fountain,  casting  you 
down  with  a  resistless  power,  and  raising  you  with  a 
tenderness  and  with  sympathies  which  are  found  only 
in  God. 

Thus  far  we  have  only  given  you  advice  ;  but  we 
mean  to  show  you  in  what  respect  these  considerations 
can  at  the  same  time  be  presented,  if  not  as  a  proof,  at 
24 


WS  SACRED    CRITICISM 

least  as  a  powerful  presumption  in  favor  of  a  verbal  in- 
spiration of  the  Scriptures.  We  shall  show  our  readers 
a  three-fold  experience  in  them,  which,  at  all  limes,  has 
carried  profound  conviction  to  other  Christians,  whose 
testimony  ought  at  least  to  appear  to  them  worthy  of 
the  most  sincere  consideration. 

Certainly  one  of  the  strongest  proofs  of  the  divinity 
of  the  Scriptures,  is  this  majesty  which  fills  us  with 
astonishment  and  respect ;  it  is  the  in^iposing  m^^*-  of 
this  book,  composed  during  fifteen  hundred  years  by  so 
many  authors,  some  of  whom  wrote  two  centuries  be- 
fore the  time  of  Hercules,  of  Jason  and  the  Aroonauts  ; 
others  in  the  heroic  times  of  Priam,  of  Achilles  and 
Agamemnon  ;  others  in  the  days  of  Thales  and  Pytha- 
goras ;  others  in  the  age  of  Seneca,  of  Tacitus,  of  Plu- 
tarch, of  Tiberius  and  Domitian  ;  and  who  yet  pursued 
one  and  the  same  plan,  and  advanced  constantly,  as  if 
they  themselves  understood  it,  towards  that  one  great 
end.  the  history  of  the  world's  redemption  by  the  Son 
of  God.  It  is  this  vast  harmony  of  all  the  Scriptures 
through  so  many  ag^es  ;  this  Old  Testament  alike  with 
the  New,  filled  with  Jesus  Christ;  this  universal  his- 
tory which  nothing  can  stop,  which  relates  the  revolu- 
tions of  Empires  even  to  the  end  of  time,  and  which, 
'when  the  pictures  of  the  past  are  finished,  continues 
them  by  those  of  the  future,  up  to  the  moment  when  the 
empires  of  the  world  will  have  become  the  possession 
of  Christ  and  his  saints.  On  the  first  page,  the  earth 
created  to  receive  the  man  who  sins  not ;  on  the  follow- 
ing pages,  the  earth  accursed  to  receive  man  who  sins 
always  ;  on  the  last  page,  the  new  heavens  and  the  new 
earth  to  receive  man  who  will  sin  no  more  :  on  the  first 
page,  the  tree  of  life  forbidden,  paradise  lost,  sih  enter- 


THE  DOOR-KEEPER  OF  THE  TEMPLE.       279 

ing  the  world  by  the  first  Adam,  and  death  by  sin  ;  in 
the  last  page,  paradise  regained,  life  restored  to  the 
world  by  the  second  Adam,  death  vanquished,  all  mourn- 
ing ended,  the  image  of  God  reestablished  in  man,  and 
the  tree  of  life  in  the  midst  of  the  paradise  of  God. 
Surely  there  is  in  this  majestic  whole,  which  begins  be- 
fore the  days  of  man,  and  which  continues  even  to  the 
end  of  time,  a  powerful  and  heavenly  unity,  an  undevia- 
ting,  universal  and  immense  convergence,  whose  gran- 
deur seizes  the  attention,  surpasses  all  our  human  con- 
ceptions, and  proclaims  the  divinity  of  its  author  as  irre- 
sistibly as  can  in  a  summer's  night,  the  aspect  of  the 
heaven's  brilliant  stars,  and  the  thought  of  all  these 
worlds  of  light,  which  revolve  night  and  day  in  the  im- 
mensity of  space.  MvQia  q^ila  xul  ai'ftq^o)ict^  says  one 
of  the  Fathers  of  the  Church.*  But  beside  the  beauties 
of  this  whole,  which  the  Scriptures  present,  we  have 
still  something  to  contemplate  no  less  glorious,  which 
reveals  to  us  also  the  action  of  God  in  their  minutest 
points,  and  which  attests  to  us  their  verbal  inspiration. 

Three  orders  of  persons,  or  rather  three  orders  of  ex- 
periences, furnish  us  this  testimony. 

First,  if  you  consult  ministers  who  have  devoted  their 
whole  lives  to  the  meditation  of  the  Scriptures,  for  the 
daily  nourishment  of  the  flock  of  Christ,  they  will  tell 
you,  that  the  more  they  have  given  themselves  to  this 
blessed  study,  and  have  applied  themselves  to  look 
closely  into  the  oracles  of  God,  the  more  has  their  ad- 
miration for  the  letter  of  the  Scriptures  increased.  Of- 
ten surprised  by  unexpected  beauties,  they  there  recog- 
nise, even  in  the  slightest  expressions,  divine  foresight, 

*  "  Myriads  of  objects  in  acrord  and  perfect  harmony."    Theophilus  ad 
Autolyc.  lU).  i.  c.  35.     See  also  Justin  Martyr,  ad  Graecos  cohort,  c.  8. 


280  SACRED   CRITICISM 

profound  relations,  spiritual  grandeur,  which  became 
manifest  merely  by  a  more  exact  translation  or  a  more 
profound  attention  to  the  details  of  a  single  verse.  They 
will  tell  you  that  the  minister  of  God,  who  for  a  long 
time  holds  before  the  eyes  of  his  mind,  some  text  of 
Scripture,  feels  himself  soon  compelled  to  use  the  lan- 
guage of  the  naturalist  studying  with  the  microscope,  a 
leaf  of  the  forest,  its  texture,  its  nerves,  its  thousand 
pores  and  innumerable  vessels.  "  He  who  made  the 
forest,  made  also  the  leaf!"  he  exclaims.  Yes,  replies 
the  other,  and  "  he  who  made  the  Bible,  made  also  the 
verses  that  compose  it."  A  second  order  of  experiences, 
the  testimony  of  which  we  here  invoke,  is  that  of  the 
interpreters  of  the  prophecies.  They  will  unitedly  tell 
you,  with  what  evidence,  when  they  had  given  time  to 
this  study,  they  recognized,  that  in  these  miraculous 
pages,  it  must  needs  be,  that  each  verse,  each  word, 
without  exception,  even  the  particle  apparently  the  most 
unimportant,  has  been  given  by  God.  The  slightest 
change  in  a  verb,  in  an  adverb,  or  in  the  simplest  con- 
junction, might  lead  the  interpreter  into  the  most  serious 
error.  And  it  has  often  been  remarked,  that  where  the 
prophecies  that  are  now  fulfilled,  were  misapprehended 
before  their  fulfilment,  it  has  proceeded  in  a  great  de- 
gree, from  the  fact  that  they  have  failed  in  attention  to 
some  of  the  details  of  their  text.  We  might  here  cite 
many  examples,  by  way  o.f  illustration. 

But  there  is  slill  a  third  order  of  persons  who  te.stif^'- 
more  strongly,  if  possible,  the  full  inspiration  of  the 
Scriptures,  even  of  their  smallest  points.  These  are  the 
Christians  who  have  ft-lt  their  power,  first  in  ihe  con- 
version of  their  souls,  then  in  the  various  conflicts,  af- 
flictions and  trials  that  have  followed  it.     Go,  seek  in 


THE  DOOR'KEEPER  OF  THE  TEMPLE.       281 

the  biographies  of  these  men  who  were  great  in  the 
kingdom  of  God,  the  moment  when  they  passed  from 
death  to  life,  by  the  knowledge  of  Jesus  Christ ;  ask 
also  in  turn,  the  Christians  around  you  who  have  them- 
selves experienced  this  virtue  of  the  word  of  God  ;  they 
will  give  a  unanimous  testimony.  They  will  tell  you 
that  when  the  sacred  Scriptures,  taking  hold  of  their 
conscience,  cast  them  down  at  the  foot  of  the  cross,  there 
to  reveal  to  them  the  love  of  God,  to  bathe  them  in  the 
tears  of  gratitude  and  joy  ;  what  affected  them  thus,  was 
not  the  whole  of  the  Bible,  nor  was  it  a  chapter  ;  it  was 
a  verse  ;  almost  Invariably,  it  was  a  word,  in  this  verse  ; 
yea,  it  was  a  word  which  penetrated  like  the  sharp 
pointed  sword  wielded  by  the  hand  of  God.  They  felt 
it  to  be  living  and  efficacious,  a  discerner  of  the  thoughts 
and  affections  of  the  heart,  entering  the  very  soul,  pierc- 
ing even  to  the  dividing  asunder  of  soul  and  spirit, and 
of  the  joints  and  marrow.  It  was  a  virtue  of  God  which 
concentrated  itself  in  one  single  word,  which  made  it 
become  to  them  as  "a  fire  and  as  a  hammer  that  break- 
eth  the  rock  in  pieces."*  They  will  tell  you  that  the 
more  studious  they  have  become  of  the  holy  word,  the 
more  also  have  they  felt  growing,  by  intimate  and  deep 
experience,  their  respect  for  its  least  important  parts ; 
because  they  have  found  it,  as  St.  Paul  says,  "  mighty 
through  God,  to  the  pulling  down  of  strong  holds  ;  cast- 
ino-  down  imaofinations  and  every  hitjh  thino-  that  exalt- 
eth  itself  against  the  knowledge  of  God,  biinging  into 
captivity  every  t^LOught,  to  the  obedience  of  Christ."! 
They  had  read  in  the  moment  of  their  need,  a  psalm  or 
some  words  of  the  prophets,  or  some  sentence  of  the 
epistles,  or  some  narrative  of  the  sacred  history ;  and 

•  Jer.  xxiii.  29.  t  2  Cor.  x.  4,  5. 

24* 


282  SACRED    CRITICISM 

whilst  they  were  reading,  behold  a  word  came  to  seize 
their  conscience  with  a  force  unknown,  drawing-,  irre- 
sistible. It  was  but  a  word  ;  yet  this  word  remained 
upon  their  soul,  spoke  to  it,  preached  to  it,  sounded 
there  as  if  all  the  bells  of  the  city  of  God  were  ringing 
to  call  them  to  fasting,  to  bend  the  knee,  to  pray,  to  meet 
Jesus  Christ,  to  hope,  to  rejoice.  It  was  but  a  word, 
but  this  word  was  of  God.  It  was  in  appearance,  but 
one  of  the  most  delicate  chords  of  this  heaven-descended 
harp  ;  but  this  chord  was  tuned  in  unison  with  the  hu- 
man heart ;  harmonies  sounded  forth,  unexpected,  deli- 
cious, omnipotent,  which  moved  all  their  being,  and  was 
as  the  voice  of  many  waters.  They  felt  then,  that  that 
chord  was  attached  to  the  very  heart  of  God,  and  that  its 
harmonies  came  from  heaven.  They  there  recognised 
the  appeal  of  Jesus  Christ ;  and  his  word  was  to  them 
powerful  as  that  single  word,  "  Mary  !"  which  aston- 
ished Mary  Magdalene  near  the  sepulchre. — Like  her, 
they  exclaimed,  "  Rabboni,  my  Master  !  It  is  then  thy 
voice,  oh  my  Savior  ;  thou  callest  me  ;  I  recognise  thee ! 
Ah  !  behold  me.  Lord  ;  I  give  myself  to  thee  ;  speak, 
thy  servant  heareth  thee." 

Such  is  then  the  voice  of  the  Church  ;  such  has  been 
in  all  ages  the  unanimous  testimony  of  the  saints  ;  this 
inspiration  which  the  Bible  attributes  to  itself,  we,  they 
say,  have  recognised.  We  believe  it,  not  only  because 
it  attests  it,  but  also  because  we  have  seen  it,  and  be- 
cause we  can  ourselves  render  testimony  of  it  by  a 
happy  experience,  ahd  an  irresistible  sentiment. 

We  might  adduce  such  examples  by  thousands.  Let 
us  content  ourselves  with  naming  here  two  of  the  no- 
blest spirits  that  huve  influenced  the  destinies  of  the 
Church,  and  serv(  d  as  guides  to  humanity.     Let  us  re- 


THE  DOOR-KEEPER  OF  THE  TEMPLE.       283 

member  how  the  two  greatest  luminaries  of  ancient  and 
modern  times  were  kindled  ;  and  how  it  was  one  single 
passage  of  the  Scriptures  which  came,  prepared  of  God, 
to  shed  upon  their  souls  the  light  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 
Luther,  an  Augustinian  monk,  was  going  to  Rome  ;  he 
was  still  sick  upon  his  bed,  at  Bologna,  in  a  strange 
country,  bowed  down  under  the  weight  of  his  sins,  be- 
lieving himself  about  to  appear  before  God.  It  was 
then  that  the  17th  verse  of  the  first  chapter  of  the  Epis- 
tle to  the  Romans  ;  "  The  just  shall  live  by  faith,"  came 
to  enlighten  all  his  being,  as  a  ray  from  heaven.  This 
single  sentence  had  seized  him  twice  with  resistless 
power  ;  first  at  Bologna,  to  fill  him  with  strength  and 
an  inexpressible  peace  ;  then  afterwards  at  Rome  itself, 
to  cast  him  down,  and  to  lift  him  up,  whilst  with  an 
idolatrous  crowd,  he  was  dragging  his  body  on  his 
knees,  up  the  fabulous  staircase  of  Pilate.  This  word 
commenced  the  western  reformation.  "  Transforming 
word  for  the  Reformer  and  the  Reformation  ;"  exclaims 
my  precious  friend.  Merle  D'Aubigne.  It  was  by  it 
that  God  then  said  :  "  Let  there  be  light,  and  there  was 
light."  "  In  truth,"  says  the  Reformer  himself,  -  I  felt 
myself  as  it  were,  entirely  renewed;  and  this  word  was 
for  me  the  very  gate  of  paradise."  '•  Hie  me  prorsus 
renatum  esse  seiisi,  et  apertls  portis  in  ipsum  Paradi- 
sum  i/iirasseJ^* 

Are  we  not  here  reminded  again  of  the  greatest  of 
the  doctors  of  Christian  antiquity,  that  admirable  Augus- 
tine, when  in  his  garden  near  Milan,  unhappy,  without 
peace  ;  feeling  too,  like  Martin  Luther,  a  storm  in  his 
soul ;  lying  under  a  fig  tree  ;  ^-  jacians  voces  miserabiles, 
et  dimiUens  habenas  lacrymis  ;"  groaning  and  pouring 

•  L.  Opp.  lat.  in  Praef. 


284  SACRED    CRITICISM 

out  abundant  tears  ;  he  heard  from  a  young  voice,  sing- 
ing- and  repeating  in  rapid  succession :  "  Tidle.  lege, 
ToLle^  lege  /"  take  and  read,  take  and  read.  He  went 
to  Alypius  to  procure  the  roll  of  Paul's  Epistles  which 
he  had  left  there  ;  adrlpui,  aperai,  et  legi  in  silentio  ; 
he  seized  it,  he  opened  it,  and  he  there  read  in  silence 
the  chapter  on  which  his  eyes  first  alighted.  And  when 
he  came  to  the  13th  verse  of  the  13th  chapter  of  the 
Epistle  to  the  Romans,  every  thing  was  decided  by  a 
word.  Jesus  had  conquered  ;  and  that  grand  career  of 
the  holiest  of  the  Fathers  there  commenced.  A  word, 
a  single  word  of  God  had  kindled  that  glorious  lumi- 
nary which  was  to  enlighten  the  church  for  ten  centu- 
ries ;  and  whose  beams  gladden  her  even  to  this  present 
day.  After  thirty-one  years  of  revolt,  of  combats,  of 
falls,  of  misery;  faith,  life,  eternal  peace  came  to  this 
erring  soul ;  a  new  day,  an  eternal  day  arose  upon  it. 

After  these  words,  he  desired  no  more  ;  he  closed  the 
book  ;  his  doubts  had  fled.  With  this  sentence,  a  stream 
of  light  and  security  was  poured  into  his  soul ;  and  all 
the  night  of  his  doubts  vanished.  "  Nor  would  I  read 
any  farther  ;  there  was  no  need  of  more ;  for  with  the 
end  of  this  sentence  the  light  of  salvation  was  infused 
into  my  heart,  and  all  the  darkness  of  doubt  fled  away."* 

There  is  yet  one  other  experience  of  the  same  charac- 
ter, which  we  esteem  too  striking  to  pass  over,  although 
its  testimony  may  be  lightly  esteemed,  except  among 
those  who  already  believe.  The  further  an  individual 
advances  in  the  christian  life,  and  receives  a  more  abun- 
dant measure  of  the  Spirit  of  God,  the  more  remarkable 

*  Nee  ultra  volui  legere.  nee  opus  erat;  statim  qnippe  eum  fine  hujuscw 
sententitE,  quasi  luce  seciirit!iti»  infiisa  cordi  nieo,  onine:s  dubitatic««is  ten- 
ebrae  diffugerunt. "—Co«/css/ons,  Book  viii.  ch.  12. 


THE  DOOR-KEEPER  OF  THE  TEMPLE.       285 

will  be  the  opposite  characters  which  on  the  one  hand 
the  Scripture,  and  on  the  other,  the  most  esteemed  writ- 
ings of  men  will  assume  in  his  mind.  He  will  be  ob- 
served to  be  increasingly  independent  of  the  works  and 
words  of  men,  because  he  has  learnt  that  they  can  yield 
him  no  further  instructions  ;  or  that,  at  least,  after  a  sin- 
gle perusal,  there  remains  nothing  to  receive.  How 
blessedly  otherwise  is  it  with  the  Scriptures  ;  how  con- 
trasted the  attention  he  will  pay  to  them  :  ever  more  and 
more  convinced  of  the  w^isdom  they  reveal,  and  of  their 
divine  power, — ever  increasingly  affected  by  their  small- 
est word, — ever  better  able  to  feed  upon  and  enjoy,  by 
day  or  by  night,  their  single  passages  and  fragments. 
There  is,  in  this  fact,  for  those  who  can  appreciate  it, 
much  that  is  impressive  and  interesting. 

Such  is  then  the  threefold  testimony  which  we  de- 
sired to  produce,  and  by  which  the  Church  attests  to  us 
that  there  is  a  wisdom  and  a  power  of  God  diffused 
through  the  minutest  parts  of  the  Holy  Word  ;  and 
that  all  the  scriptures  are  divinely  inspired.  At  the 
same  time,  let  it  be  understood,  that  we  have  not  pre- 
tended, in  this  appeal,  to  impose  the  experience  of  one 
upon  another.  Proofs  from  feeling,  we  are  aware,  are 
proofs  only  to  those  who  experience  it.  They  have  un- 
questionably, an  irresistible  force  for  those  Avho,  by  ex- 
periencing its  power,  have  had  a  living  evidence  of  the 
divinity  of  the  word  of  God  ;  but  nothing  would  be  less 
logical  than  to  give  them  as  demonstrations  to  those 
w^ho  are  strangers  to  them.  If  you  had  had  these  ex- 
periences, you  would  have  been  already  more  than  con- 
vinced, and  our  argument  might  be  spared.  We  have 
then  presented  them  to  you  only  as  strong  historical  pre- 
sumptions, hoping  to  dispose  you  by  this  means,  to  re- 


286  SACRED    CRITICISM,    ETC. 

ceive  with  more  favor  and  with  more  prompt  submis- 
sion, the  scriptural  proois  which  we  are  about  to  submit 
to  you.  An  entire  generation  of  educated  and  pious 
men,  we  tell  you,  attest  to  you  for  ages,  and  by  a  three- 
fold experience,  that  by  a  closer  study  of  the  word  of 
God,  they  have  been  led  to  recognise  on  evidence,  the 
inspiration  of  the  Scriptures,  even  in  their  minutest  parts. 
Let  this  be  to  you,  at  least  a  powerful  recommendation 
to  hear  respectively  and  without  prejudice,  the  testimo- 
nies of  the  Bible  to  its  own  nature.  We  are  about  to 
furnish  these  testimonies ;  but,  in  the  mean  time,  we  ask 
that  this  voice  of  the  Church  may  be  to  you  as  that  cry 
from  a  neighboring  house  :  take  and  read,  take  and 
read.  Go  take  your  Bible,  my  brother  ;  adripe,  aperi, 
lege  in  silentio ;  take,  open,  read  in  silence  ;  and  you 
yourself  shall  feel  how  far  its  inspiration  extends,  and 
you  also  shall  say  to  yourself  with  Augustine,  after  so 
many  combats  and  so  many  tears :  no  more  doubt,  for 
the  morning  star  has  arisen  upon  my  heart ! — and  you 
will  have  no  need  to  read  any  farther,  in  order  to  banish 
every  doubt. 


CHAPTER  V. 

DIDACTIC    SUMMARY   OF   THE   THEOPNEUSTIC 
DOCTRINE. 

We  have  now  defined  and  refuted  ;  it  remains  for  us 
to  prove.  But  it  must  be  done  by  the  word  of  God 
alone.  If  God  reveals  himself,  it  is  for  him  to  tell  us, 
in  this  very  revelation,  to  what  extent  he  has  designed 
to  do  it.  Far  be  from  us  all  vain  hypotheses  on  such  a 
subject.  They  could  contain  nothing  more  than  our 
own  phantasies,  which  might  dazzle  the  eye  of  our 
faith,  but  could  not  enlighten  it.  The  great  question  is, 
the  entire  question  ;  what  do  the  Scriptures  say? 

It  has  been  asked  if  the  Bible  is  inspired  even  in  its 
language.  We  have  affirmed  that  it  is.  In  other 
words,  (for  we  have  cheerfully  consented  to  reduce  our 
entire  thesis  to  this  second  expression,  equivalent  to  the 
first,)  it  is  asked  if  the  men  of  God  have  given  us  the 
Scriptures  exempt  from  all  error,  great  or  small,  posi- 
tive or  negative.     Our  answer  to  this,  is  affirmative. 

The  Scriptures  are  composed  of  books,  of  phrases 
and  of  words.  Without  making  any  hypothesis  upon 
the  manner  which  God  lias  adopted  for  dictating  the 
one  and  the  other,  we  maintain,  with  the  Scriptures, 
that  this  word  is  of  God,  without  any  exception, — and 
if  any  one  should  still  ask  us,  how  God  dictated  all  the 
words  of  his  book  to  the  sacred  writers,  we  should  de- 
lay our  answer,  until  some  one  should  show  us  how 
God  dictated  all  its  thoughts ;  and  we  should  remind 
him  of  that  child  who  said  to  his  father  :  "  My  father, 


288  RETROSPECT. 

where  did  God  get  his  colors  to  paint  all  the  cherries 
such  a  beautiful  red?"  "My  child,  I  will  tell  you, 
when  I  shall  have  learned  how  he  painted  all  the  leaves 
such  a  beautiful  green."     This  is  all  our  thesis. 

But,  what  have  we  done  to  establish  it?  We  have 
not  yet  proved  it ;  the  Bible  alone  can  do  that.  Let  us 
then  review  what  we  have  accomplished. 

SECTION  I. 

Retrospect. 

To  exhibit  the  doctrine  more  clearly,  we  have 
thought  that  before  coming  to  its  proofs,  it  would  be 
useful  to  examine  the  different  objections  which,  it  has 
encountered,  and  the  hypotheses  which  have  often  been 
substituted  for  it.  For  that  purpose,  we  have  first  en- 
deavored to  put  our  finger  upon  the  original  error  of 
all  those  false  systems  which  evade  inspiration,  by  pre- 
tending to  explain  it. — It  is  the  book,  we  have  said, 
that  is  inspired  ;  it  is  of  the  book  we  treat,  and  not  of 
the  writers.  We  may  dispense  with  believing  in  the 
inspiration  of  the  thoughts  ;  but  we  cannot  dispense 
with  believing  in  that  of  the  language.  If  the  words 
of  the  book  are  dictated  by  God,  what  are  the  thoughts 
of  the  writer  to  me  ?  He  might  have  been  an  idiot, 
but  that  which  came  from  his  hand,  must  still  be  the 
Bible  ;  whereas,  if  the  thoughts,  and  not  the  words 
were  given,  it  is  not  the  Bible  that  he  gives  me,  it  is 
little  more  than  a  sermon. — Yet  we  have  taken  great 
care  to  qualify.  The  Scriptures  are  entirely  the  w^ord 
of  man,  and  the  Scriptures  are  entirely  the  word  of  God. 
This,  in  our  view,  is  one  of  their  sublimest  features. 
Admire  them,  O  man  !  for  they  have  spoken  for  thee 
and  like  thee  :  they  have  come  to  meet  thee,  all  clothed 


RETROSPECT.  289 

With  humanity  ;  the  eternal  Spirit  (in  this  respect  at 
Itast,  and  in  a  certain  degree,)  has  made  himself  man, 
to  speak  to  thee,  as  the  eternal  Son  has  made  himself 
man,  to  redeem  thee.  To  this  end  he  chose,  before  all 
time,  men  '•  subject  to  like  passions"  with  thee.  For 
that,  he  foresaw  and  he  prepared  their  character,  their 
circumstances,  their  style,  their  manner,  their  time,  their 
path  ;  and  it  is  through  this  that  the  gospel  is  the  ten- 
derness and  sympathy  of  God,  as  it  is  the  "  wisdom  and 
power  of  God." 

Yet  we  have  been  obliged  to  consider  the  objections. 
The  individuality  of  the  writers  so  constantly  impressed 
on  the  sacred  books,  has  been  particularly  alleged  as 
an  evidence  that  their  inspiration  was  intermittent,  im- 
perfect, and  mixed  with  the  fallible  thoughts  of  human 
wisdom.  Very  far  from  overlooking  the  fact  thus  objected, 
we  hn  ve  both  admitted  it,  and  adored  in  it  alike,  the  wis- 
dom and  the  goodness  of  God.  But  of  what  importance 
to  the  fact  of  the  Theopneusty,  is  the  absence  or  con- 
currence of  the  emotions  of  the  sacred  writers?  God 
can  employ  them  or  dispense  with  them.  When  he 
speaks  to  us,  must  he  not  do  it  in  the  manner  and  style 
of  men  ?  And  if  the  Almighty  makes  use  of  second 
causes  in  all  his  other  works,  why  should  he  not  do  it 
in  Theopneusty  ?  Besides,  we  have  said,  this  individu- 
ality, thus  objected,  shows  itself  equally  in  the  parts  of 
the  Scriptures  the  most  incontestably  dictated  by  God. 
This  system  of  a  gradual  and  intermittent  inspiration 
presents  at  once  the  characteristics  of  complication,  te- 
merity and  puerility ;  but  that  above  all,  which  con- 
demns it,  is,  that  it  is  directly  contrary  to  the  testimony 
which  the  Scriptures  give  of  themselves.  After  all,  let 
no  one  think  that  the  employment  of  the  personal  know- 
25 


290  RETROSPECT. 

ledge  and  feelings  of  the  writers  was  accidental.  No  ; 
all  these  different  writers  were  chosen  before  the  foun- 
dation of  the  world,  for  the  work  to  which  they  were 
destined  ;  and  God  prepared  them  all  for  it,  like  St. 
Paul,  from  their  birth.  Oh  !  how  admirable  are  the 
sacred  books  in  this  very  respect :  how  incomparable 
they  appear  ;  how  quickly  we  recognise  in  them  the 
abundance  of  that  divine  power,  which  caused  them  to 
be  written  ! 

Some  have  also  objected  the  necessity  of  transla- 
tions, and  their  inevitable  imperfection  ;  others,  the  nu- 
merous variations  in  the  ancient  manuscripts  from 
which  the  Bible  has  been  printed.  We  have  answered, 
that  these  two  fads  can  in  no  way  affect  the  question 
with  regard  to  the  primitive  text ; — were  the  apostles 
and  the  prophets  commissioned  to  give  us  a  Bible  en- 
tirely inspired  and  without  any  mixture  of  error  ? 
That  is  the  question  ;  but  at  the  same  time  we  have 
been  able  to  triumph  with  the  Church,  in  view  of  the 
condition  of  these  sacred  manuscripts  and  the  astonish- 
ing insignificance  of  the  variations.  The  providence 
of  the  Lord  has  watched  over  the  inestimable  deposit. 

Again,  it  is  objected  against  verbal  inspiration,  that 
the  Apostles  have,  in  the  New  Testament,  made  use. 
and  such  use  of  the  version  of  the  Septuagint :  but  we 
have,  on  the  contrary,  reminded  you  that  in  the  sovereign 
and  independent  manner  in  which  they  have  employed 
it,  you  have  a  new  proof  of  the  agency  of  that  Spirit 
who  led  them  to  speak. 

Finally,  it  has  even  been  objected,  that  after  all,  there 
arc  errors  in  the  Scriptures  ;  and  these  errors  have  been 
cited.  We  have  denied  the  fact.  Because  some  state- 
ment in  some  sentence  has  not  at  once  been  compre- 


RETROSPECT.  29 1 

bended,  the  word  of  God  hns  immediately  been  blamed 
for  it.  We  have  wished  to  give  some  example  of  the 
imprudence  and  error  of  these  reproaches  ;  but  at  the 
same  time,  we  have  hastened  to  come  directly  to  this 
objection,  to  show  its  authors  that  they  can  attack  the 
inspiration  of  the  language,  only  by  imputing  error  to 
the  thoughts  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  What  rashness!  In 
saying  of  the  Bible,  as  Pilate  did  of  Jesus  Christ, 
'•  what  evil  hath  it  done  ?"  they  bring  it  to  their  judg- 
ment-bar !  what  v/ill  you  then  do  to  those  who  buffet 
it,  who  spit  upon  it,  and  who  say  to  it;  "prophecy; 
Vv'ho  is  he  that  smote  thee  ?"  Ah  !  come  down  from 
your  tribunal,  come  down  ! 

The  language  of  the  Scriptures  has  been  accused  of 
erroneous  expressions,  which  betray  in  the  sacred 
authors,  an  ignorance,  elsewhere  very  pardonable,  it 
has  been  said,  of  the  constitution  of  the  heavens  and  of 
the  phenomena  of  nature.  But  here  as  elsewhere,  the 
objections  examined  more  closely,  are  changed  into  sub- 
jects of  admiration  ;  for,  in  making  us  grind  the  dia- 
monds of  the  Holy  Scriptures,  they  have  made  us  bring 
out  unexpected  beauties,  which  but  serve  to  discover  to 
us  new  reflections  of  its  divinity.  W'hilst  you  cannot 
find  in  the  Bible  any  of  those  errors  which  abound  in 
the  sacred  books  of  all  the  heathen  nations,  and  in  ail 
the  philosophers  of  antiquity,  it  betrays  in  a  thousand 
ways,  in  its  language,  the  science  of  the  Ancient  of  days; 
and  you  will  immediately  recognise,  both  by  the  expres- 
sions which  it  employs,  and  by  those  which  it  avoids, 
that  this  language  was,  for  thirty  centuries,  in  an  intel- 
ligent and  profound  harmony  with  the  eternal  truth  of 
facts.  That  which  you  have  known  since  yesterday,  it 
says.  I  did  not  mention  to  you,  but  I  knew  it  from  eternity. 


292  RETROSPECT. 

The  passages  of  St.  Paul  too,  in  which  he  distin- 
guishes that  which  the  Lord  says,  from  that  which  he 
himself  says,  have  been  used  as  objections.  We  believe 
we  have  showed  that,  on  the  contrary,  he  could  not  have 
given  a  more  convincing  proof  of  his  inspiration,  than 
the  boldness  of  such  a  distinction  ;  since,  with  an  author- 
ity wholly  divine,  he  was  there  revoking  the  laws  of 
the  Old  Testament. 

That  was  not  all ;  we  have  had  to  reply  to  other  ob- 
jections, which  present  themselves  rather  under  the 
form  of  systems,  and  which  would  pretend  to  exclude 
from  inspiration,  a  part  of  the  book  of  God. 

Some  have  been  willing  to  admit  the  inspiration  of 
the  Bible,  and  to  dispute  only  that  of  its  language  ;  but 
we  have  suggested,  first,  that  there  exists  so  necessary 
a  connexion  of  the  thoughts  with  the  words,  that  a  com- 
plete inspiration  of  the  first,  without  a  full  inspiration  of 
the  latter,  cannot  be  conceived  of  We  have  desired  to 
show  how  irrational  such  a  conception  would  be  :  and 
to  this  end,  we  have  pointed  out  its  illusion,  since  those 
who  make  it,  find  themselves  forced,  the  moment  they 
would  sustain  it,  to  attack  the  thoughts  of  the  Scripture, 
as  well  as  its  language,  and  to  impute  errors  to  the  sa- 
cred writers. 

We  have  elsewhere  reproached  this  fatal  system  with 
being  nothing  else  than  a  human  hypothesis ;  fantasti- 
cally assumed,  without  being  authorized  by  any  thing 
in  the  word  of  God.  It  also  inevitably  leads,  we  have 
said,  to  the  most  contemptuous  suppositions  concerning 
the  word  of  God  ;  whilst  at  the  same  time,  it  does  not 
remove  a  single  difficulty  from  our  mind;  since  after 
all,  it  only  substitutes  for  on'e  inexplicable  operation  of 
God,  another  which  is  no  less  so. 


RETROSPECT. 


293 


But  again,  we  have  added  ;  what  is  the  use  of  this 
system,  since  it  is  incomplete,  and  since  by  the  admis- 
sion even  of  those  who  sustain  it,  it  is  applicable  only  to 
one  part  of  the  Scriptures  ?  Others  again  have  some- 
times wished  to  concede  to  us  the  full  inspiration  of 
certain  books,  but  to  exclude  from  it  the  historical 
writings.  We  have  showed  not  only  that  every  dis- 
tinction of  this  kind  is  gratuitous,  rash,  opposed  to  the 
terms  of  the  Scriptures ;  but  also,  that  these  books  are 
perhaps,  of  all  the  Bible,  those  whose  inspiration  is  the 
most  attested,  the  most  necessary,  the  most  evident ; 
those  which  Jesus  Christ  has  cited  with  the  greatest  re- 
spect ;  those  which  most  powerfully  search  the  heart, 
and  which  tell  the  secrets  of  the  conscience.  They 
foretell  the  most  important  future  events,  in  their  least 
details ;  they  constantly  announce  Jesus  Christ ;  they 
describe  the  character  of  God;  they  teach  doctrines; 
they  legislate  ;  they  reveal.  They  shine  with  a  divine 
wisdom,  both  in  that  which  they  say,  and  in  that  w^hich 
they  suppress;  in  their  prophetic  reserve,  in  their  sub- 
lime moderation,  in  their  plenitude,  in  their  variety,  in 
their  brevity.  To  write  them,  we  repeat,  required  more 
than  men,  more  than  angels. 

It  has  generally  been  asked,  if  we  could  discover  any 
divinity  in  certain  passages  of  the  Scriptures,  too  vulgar 
to  be  inspired.  We  believe  we  have  showed  how  much 
wisdom,  on  the  contrary,  shines  in  these  passages,  when, 
instead  of  judging  them  hastily,  we  seek  in  them  the 
teachings  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 

Finally,  we  have  entreated  the  reader  to  go  directly 
to  the  Scriptures,  and  to  consecrate  to  studying  them  by 
themselves,  with  prayer,  the  time  which  he  may  re- 
cently have  employed  in  judging  them  ;  and  we  have 
25* 


294  CATECHISM. 

warranted  him,  upon  the  testimony  of  all  the  Church, 
and  from  a  threefold  experience,  that  the  divine  inspira- 
tion of  the  least  parts  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  shall 
quickly  reveal  itself  to  him,  if  he  can  study  them  with 
respect. 

We  have  desired  that  this  work  should  not  wear  so 
theological  an  aspect,  that  christian  women  and  other 
persons  unacquainted  with  certain  theological  studies,  or 
with  the  s-acred  languages,  should  fear  to  undertake  the 
perusal  of  it.  At  the  same  time  we  should  fail  to  accom- 
plish one  part  of  our  design,  if  the  doctrine  had  not  been 
stated,  on  some  points,  with  more  precision.  We  shall 
then  ask  that,  to  avoid  being  led,  under  another  form,  to 
too  extended  developments,  we  may  be  permitted  to  state 
it  here,  more  didactically,  and  to  review  it  in  a  short 
catechism.  We  shall  do  scarcely  more  than  indicate 
the  place  of  the  points  already  stated,  and  we  shall  give 
a  little  expansion  to  those  only  of  which  we  have  not 
yet  spoken. 

SECTION  11. 

Short  CaLecheLical  Essay  on  the  Principal  Points  of  the  Doctrine. 

I.  What  do  we  then  understand  by  Theopneusty? 
Theopneusty  is  the  mysterious  power  exercised  by 

the  Spirit  of  God  over  the  authors  of  the  Holy  Scrip- 
tures, to  make  them  write  them,  to  guide  them  in  the 
employment  of  even  the  words  they  were  to  use,  and 
thus  to  preserve  them  from  all  error. 

II.  What  is  said  of  the  spiritual  power  which  was 
exercised  over  the  men  of  God,  while  they  were  writing 
their  sacred  books  ? 

It  is  said  that  they  were  carried  or  impelled 
(q)eQ()UEvoi)   not  by  a  human   will,  but  by  the   Holy 


CATECHISM.  295 

Spirit-,  so  thatthej'-  presented  at  that  time  the  things  of 
God,  "  not  with  the  words  which  man's  wisdom  teach- 
eth,  but  which  the  Holy  Ghost  teacheth."*  God,  saith 
the  apostle,t  at  sundry  times,  and  in  divers  manners, 
{^TiolL'U£^>C:g  Hul  TToXuTuonCg)  has  Spoken  by  the  pro- 
r-HETs  ;"  sometimes  in  granting  them  the  understanding- 
of  that  which  he  was  leading  them  to  say ;  sometimes 
without  giving  it  to  them;  sometimes  hy  dreamsif  and 
by  visions,^  which  he  afierward  led  them  to  relate; 
sometimes  by  words  given  internally  (Ao-o)  sididOeio^^) 
which  he  led  them  immediately  to  utter  ;  sometimes  by- 
words sent  externally,  (Ao^w  Tigo^ogiJiO)^)  which  he  led 
them  to  repeat. 

III.  But  what  was  passing  in  their  heart  and  in  their 
understanding,  whilst  they  were  writing? 

We  do  not  know.      This  fact,  moreover,  subjected  to 
great  varieties,  could  be  for  us,  neither  an  object  of  . 
6ci<^nce  nor  of  faith. 

IV.  But ;  have  not  the  modern  authors  who  have 
written  upon  this  subject,  often  distinguished  in  the 
Scriptures,  three  or  four  degrees  of  inspiration  ? 

This  is  a  vain  divination  ;  and  this  supposition,  more- 
over, is  in  contradiction  with  the  Word  of  God,  which 
knows  but  one  kind  of  inspiration.  There  is  nothing 
true  in  this  question,  except  the  suggestion  of  what  men 
have  done. 

V.  Do  we  not  see  at  the  same  time,  that  the  men  of 
God  were  profoundly  instructed,  and  often  even  pro- 
foundly moved  by  the  holy  things  which  they  were 

•  2  Pet.  i.  21 ;  1  Cor.  ii.  13.  t  Hebrews  i.  1. 

JNumo.  xii.  6;  Job  xxxiii.  15;  Daniel  i.  17;  vii.  1;  Gen.  xx.  6;  xxxi,  10; 
1  Kings  iii.  5;  Matt.  i.  20.;  ii.  12—22;  Acts  ii.  17. 

§  Num.  xii.  6;  xxiv.  4;  Job  vii.  14;  Psalms  Ixxxix.  26;  Matt.  xvii.  9; 
Acts  ii.  17  ;  ix.  10,  12 ;  x.  3,  17,  19 ;  xi.  5 ;  xii.  9 ;  xvi.  9,  10  ;  2  Cor.  xii.  1,  2. 


296  CATECHISM. 

leaching,  the  future  things  which  they  were  predicting^ 
and  past  events  which  they  were  relating  ? 

They  might  be,  without  doubt ;  they  were  so  most 
generally  ;  but  it  was  possible  that  they  should  not  be  ^ 
and  when  they  were  thus  instructed,  it  was  in  very  dif- 
ferent degrees,  of  which  we  remain  ignorant,  and  the 
knowledge  of  which  is  not  required  of  us. 

VI.  What  must  we  then  think  of  those  definitions  of 
Theopneusty,  in  which  the  Scriptures  seem  to  be  repre- 
sented as  the  merely  human  expression  of  a  purely  di- 
vine revelation  ;  for  instance,  that  of  Baumgarten,*  who 
says  that  inspiration  is  only  the  means  by  which  reve- 
lation, at  first  immediate,  became  mediate,  and  arranged 
itself  in  a  book  ? 

These  definitions  are  not  exact,  and  ma)--  give  rise  to 
false  ideas  of  Theopneusty. 

I  say  that  they  are  not  exact.  They  contradict  facts. 
Immediate  revelation  does  not  necessarily  precede  in- 
spiration ;  and  when  precedyig  it,  is  not  its  measure. 
The  vacant  air  has  prophesied  ;t  a  hand  coming  out  of 
the  wall  has  written  the  words  of  God  ;|  a  dumb  ani- 
mal reproved  the  folly  of  a  prophet;^  Balaam  prophe- 
sied against  his  will  ;  Daniel,  without  comprehending 
it;  and  the  Corinthian  christians,  without  even  know- 
ing the  words  which  the  Holy  Spirit  had  put  upon 
their  lips.[i 

Still  farther,  I  say  that  thpse  d^-finitioiis  engender  or 
conceal  false  notions  concerning  Theopneusty.  They 
suppose,  in  fact,  that  inspiration  is  but  the  natural  ex- 

*  De  discr.  rev.  et  insp.— Medium  quo  revelatio  immediata,  mcdiata 
facta,  inque  Vibros  relata  est. 

t  Gen.  iii.  14,  &c.  iv.  6;  Exod.  iii.  6,  &:c.  xi.x.  3,  &c. ;  Deut.  iv.  12;  Matt 
lii.  17  ;  xvii.  5,  &.c. 

i  Dan.  V.  5.  §  2  Peter  ii.  16.  8  1  C«w.  xiv. 


CATECHISM.  2^ 

pression  of  a  supernatural  revelation,  and  that  the  men 
ef  God  had  only  to  record  humanly,  in  their  books, 
that  which  the  Holy  Spirit  had  made  them  see  divinely 
in  their  imderstanding.  Inspiration  is  more  than  that. 
The  Scriptures  are  not  only  the  thought  of  God,  elabo- 
rated by  the  spirit  of  man,  to  diffuse  itself  through  the 
words  of  man  ;  they  are  the  thought  of  God,  and  the 
word  of  God 

VII.  The  Holy  Spirit  having,  in  every  age,  enlight- 
ened the  elect  of  God,  and  having,  moreover,  imparted 
to  them,  in  ancient  times,  miraculous  powers  ;  in  which 
of  these  two  orders  of  spiritual  gifts  must  we  rank 
Theopneusty  ? 

We  must  place  it  in  the  order  of  gifts  extraordinary 
and  entirely  miraculous.  The  Holy  Spirit,  in  all  ages, 
enlightens  the  elect  by  his  powerful  and  internal  influ- 
ence, testifies  to  thern  of  Jesus,*  anoints  them  from  the 
holy  One,  teaches  them  all  things,  and  convinces  them 
cf  all  truth.!  But,  besides  these  ordinary  gifts  of  illu- 
mination and  of  faith,  the  Holy  Spirit  has  bestowed  ex- 
traordina,ry  gifts  upon  men  charged  with  promulgating 
and  writing  the  oracles  of  God.  The  Theopneusty  is 
one  of  the  latter  gifts. 

VII.  Is  then  the  difference  between  illumination  and 
inspiration  in  kind,  or  only  in  degree  ? 

The  difference  is  in  kind,  and  not  merely  in  degree. 

IX.  Yet  have  not  the  Apostles  received  from  the 
Holy  Spirit,  in  addition  to  inspiration,  illumiJiation  in 
an  extraordinary  measure,  and  in  its  most  eminent 
degree  ? 

In  its  most  eminent  degree,  is  what  no  one  can  aflirm  ; 
in  an  extraordinary  degree,  is  what  no  one  can  contra- 

'  John  XV.  26.  1 1  John  ii.  20,  27 ;  John  xiv.  15,  26 ;  vii.  3S,  39. 


298  CATECHISM. 

diet.  The  Apostle  Paul,  for  example,  had  not  "  re- 
ceived the  gospel  from  man,  but  by  revelation  of  Jesus 
Christ."* 

He  wrote  "  all  his  letters,"  Saint  Peter  tells  us,t 
not  only  with  words  which  the  Holy  Ghost  teacheth  ;J 
but  also  as  were  the  other  Scriptures  (of  the  Old 
Testament,)  according  to  the  wisdom  given  unto  him."^ 
He  had  the  knowledge  of  the  mystery  of  Christ.  |[ 
Jesus  Christ  had  not  promised  to  his  Apostles  to  give 
them  a  mouth  only,  but  also  wisdom  to  testify  of  him.^ 
David,  when  he  seemed  but  to  speak  of  himself,  in  the 
Psalms,  knew  that  it  was  of  the  Messiah  that  his  words 
must  be  understood  ;  "  because  he  was  a  prophet,  and 
knew  that  of  the  fruit  of  his  loins  according  to  the  flesh, 
God  would  raise  up  Christ  to  sit  on  his  throne."** 

X.  Why  then  should  we  not  say,  that  Theopneust)'- 
is  only  illumination  in  its  highest  and  most  abundant 
degree? 

Beware  of  saying  it ;  for  you  would  then  have  an 
idea  of  inspiration,  narrow,  confused,  contingent,  and 
always  uncertain.      In  fact ; 

1.  God,  who  has  often  united  both  these  gifts  in  the 
same  man,  has  likewise  often  designed  to  separate  them, 
to  show  us  that  they  differ  essentially  one  from  the  other, 
and  that  when  united,  they  are  still  independent.  Every 
true  Christian  has  the  Holy  Spirit  ;tt  but  every  Chris- 
tian is  not  inspired ;  and  a  man  may  speak  the  words 
of  God,  without  having  received  either  the  affections  or 
the  vivifying  lights  which  they  impart. 

2.  It  can  be  showed  clearly  by  a  great  number  of  ex- 

•  Gal.  i.  12-16;  1  Cor.  xv.  3.        t  2  Peter  iii.  15,  16.         J  1  Cor  ii  13 
5  2  Peter  iii.  15,  16.  11  Eph.  iii.  3.  -n  i,uke  xxi.  15. 

••  Acts  ii.  30.  ft  Jolui  vii.  20,  27 ;  Jer.  xxxi.  34  ;  John  vi.  45. 


CATECHISM. 


299 


amples,  that  one  of  these  gifts  was  not  the  measure  of 
the  other,  and  that  the  theopneusty  of  the  prophets, 
held  no  more  proportion  to  their  intelligence  than  to 
their  holiness. 

3.  So  far  was  one  of  these  gifts  from  being  the  mea- 
sure of  the  other,  that  it  can  even  be  affirmed,  that  the 
theopneusty  appears  the  more  clearly,  the  more  the 
illumination  of  the  sacred  writer  is  inferior  to  his  in- 
spiration. When  you  see  the  prophets,  the  most  en- 
lightened of  the  Spirit  of  God,  bending  over  their  own 
pages,  after  having  written  them,  and  seeking  to  under- 
stand the  meaning  of  that  which  the  Spirit  who  was  in 
them,  had  just  made  them  express,  it  must  become  evi- 
dent to  you,  that  their  theopneusty  was  independent  of 
their  illumination. 

4.  In  supposing  even  the  illumination  of  the  prophet 
elevated  to  its  highest  degree,  it  was  at  the  same  time, 
never  at  the  height  of  the  divine  thought:  and  there 
might  be,  in  the  word  that  had  been  dictated  to  him, 
much  more  meaning  than  the  prophet  yet  saw.  David, 
without  doubt,  in  singing  his  psalms*  knew  that  they 
pointed  to  "  Him  who  was  to  be  raised  up  of  the  fruit 
of  his  loins  to  sit  on  his  throne  forever."  The  greater 
part  of  the  prophets  like  Abraham  their  father,  saw  the 
day  of  Christ ;  they  rejoiced  in  it  ;t  "  they  sought  what, 
or  what  manner  of  time  the  Spirit  which  was  in  them 
did  signify,  when  it  testified  beforehand  the  sufferings 
of  Christ  and  the  glory  that  should  follow  ;"J  .  . 
and  yet,  our  Savior  tells  us  that  the  simplest  christian, 
the  least  (in  knowledge)  in  the  kingdom  of  God,  knows 
more  concerning  it,  than  the  greatest  of  the  prophets. § 

*  Acts  ii.  30.  t  John  viii.  56.  t  1  Pet.  i.  11. 

§Mat.  xj.  11;  Michaelis  Introd.  torn.  i.  page  116—129.  Fr.  Translat. 
(This  author  thinks  that,  in  this  passage,  the  least  means  the  least  prophet.) 


300  CATECHISM. 

5.  These  gifts  differ  from  each  other  by  essential 
characteristics  which  we  shall  presently  point  out. 

6.  Finally,  it  is  always  the  inspiration  of  the  book 
which  is  presented  to  us  as  an  object  of  faith,  never  the 
internal  state  of  him  "who  writes  it.  His  knowledge  or 
his  ignorance  does  not  affect  in  the  least  the  confidence 
which  I  owe  his  words  ;  and  my  soul  ought  always  to 
look  not  so  much  to  his  knowledge,  as  to  the  God  of 
all  holiness,  who  speaks  to  me  by  his  mouth.  The 
Lord  designed,  it  is  true,  that  the  greater  part  of  his 
historians  should  be  also  the  witnesses  of  that  which 
they  related.  This  was,  without  doubt,  in  order  that 
the  world  might  hear  them  with  more  confidence,  and 
might  not  be  able  to  excite  reasonable  doubts  as  to  the 
truth  of  their  narratives.  But  the  Church,  in  her  faith, 
looks  much  higher,  the  intelligence  of  the  writers  is  to 
her  imperfectly  known  and  comparatively  indifferent : 
that  which  she  knows,  is  their  inspiration.  She  never 
goes  to  look  for  the  source  of  it  in  the  bosom  of  the 
prophet ;  it  is  in  that  of  her  God.  "  Christ  speaks  in 
me,"  says  St.  Paul  to  her ;  "  and  God  hath  spoken  to 
our  fathers  by  the  prophets."*  '•  Why  then  look  ye 
upon  us,"  say  all  the  sacred  writers  to  her,  "  as  though 
it  were  by  our  power,  or  our  holiness  that  we  had  done 
this  work  ?"t     Look  up  ! 

XL  If  there  e.xist  then,  a  specific  difference  between 
the  two  spiritual  graces  of  inspiration  and  illumination  ; 
in  what  must  we  say  that  it  consists? 

Although  you  could  not  say,  yet  you  would  not  be 
the  less  obliged,  for  the  preceding  reasons,  to  declare 
that  this  diff 'rence  exists.  In  order  to  be  able  thoroughly 
to  answer  this  question,  you  must  understand  the  na 

*  2  Cor.  xiii.  3 ;  Ileb.  i.  1,  (ti/.>  t  Acts  iii.  12. 


CATECHISM,  301 

ture  and  the  mode  of  both  these  gifts  ;  whilst  the  Holy 
Spirit  has  never  explained  to  us,  either  how  he  pours 
the  thoughts  of  God  into  the  understanding  of  a  chris- 
tian, or  how  he  places  the  word  of  God  on  the  lips  of  a 
prophet.  At  the  same  time,  we  can  here  point  out  two 
essential  characteristics,  by  which  these  two  operations 
have  always  showed  themselves  distinct.  One  of  these 
characteristics  relates  to  their  duration,  and  the  other  to 
their  degree. 

As  to  the  duration,  the  illumination  is  continued; 
while  the  inspiration  is  intermittent ;  as  to  the  measure, 
illumination  has  degrees,  whilst  inspiration  does  not  ad- 
mit them. 

XII.  What  do  we  understand  by  continued  illumi- 
nation and  intermitted  inspiration  ? 

The  illumination  of  a  saint  by  the  Holy  Spirit  is  a 
perman'^nt  work.  When  it  has  commenced  for  him  at 
the  day  of  his  new  birth,  it  then  goes  on  increasing,  and 
accompanies  him  with  its  light  to  the  very  end  of  his 
career.  This  light,  without  doubt,  is  but  too  much  ob- 
scured by  his  unfaithfulness  and  his  negligence  ;  but 
it  never  more  entirely  withdraws  from  him.  '•  His 
path,"'  saith  the  wise  man,  '•  is  as  a  shining  light,  that 
shineth  more  and  more  unto  the  perfect  day."*  "  When 
it  has  pleased  God,  who  separated  him  from  his  mo- 
ther's womb,  to  reveal  his  Son  in  him,"t  he  preserves 
even  to  the  end,  the  knowledge  of  the  mystery  of  Jesus 
Christ,  and  can  always  explain  its  truths  and  its  glories. 
As  '•  it  is  not  flesh  and  blood  that  have  revealed  these 
things  to  him,  but  the  Father,"^  this  anointing  which 
he  hath  received  of  the  holy  one,§  abideth  in  him,  says 

•  Prov.  iv.  IS.  t  Gal.  i.  1.5. 

J  Gal.  i.  16.  §  1  John  li.  20—27. 

26 


302  CATECHISM. 

St.  John,  and  he  hath  no  need  that  any  one  teach  hini : 
but  as  the  same  anointing  teacheth  him  of  all  things, 
and  is  truth,  and  is  no  lie,  and  even  as  it  hath  taught 
him,  they  shall  abide  in  him."  Illumination  then 
abides  with  the  believer ;  but  it  is  not  thus  with  mirac- 
ulous gifts,  nor  with  Theopneusty,  which  is  one  of  these 
gifts.* 

As  to  miraculous  gifts,  they  were  always  intermittent 
among  the  men  of  God,  if  we  except  Jesus  only.  The 
Apostle  Paul,  for  example,  who  at  one  time  resuscitated 
Eutychus,  and  through  whom  C4od  performed  acts  of 
extraordinary  powder,  so  that  handkerchiefs  and  gar- 
ments that  had  touched  him  only,  healed  the  sick  on 
whom  they  were  laid;  at  other  times  could  neither 
comfort  his  colleague  Trophimus,  nor  his  dear  Epaph- 
roditus,  nor  his  son  Timothy.f  Such  is  the  case  with 
Theopneusty,  which  is  merely  the  most  excellent  of 
miraculous  gifts.  It  was  exercised  only  at  intervals  in 
the  prophets  of  the  Lord.  The  prophets,  and  even  the 
Apostles,  who  (as  we  shall  show)  were  prophets  and 
more  than  prophets,;!;  ^^^  ^^^  prophecy  so  often  as  they 
themselves  desired.  Theopneusty  was  granted  them  at 
intervals  ;  it  descended  upon  them  according  to  the  will 
of  the  Holy  Spirit  [xa6\hg  ibnrevfia  edlSou  uvioig  aq.dfy- 
yEodar^)  for  "  prophecy  came  not  by  the  will  of  man,"  says 
St.  Peter,  "  but  they  were  filled  with  the  Holy  Ghost, 
and  spake  as  the  Spirit  gave  them  utterance.''^  God 
spake  by  the  prophets  (eV  tolg  Tr^o^iJTa/c,)  says  St.  Paul, 
when  he  willed,  at  dififerent  times,  and  by  diiTerent  ways 
[nolv^utQOK,  7To).vTo6nu)g.)  "  On  such  a  day  and  at  such 
a  time,"  it  is  often  written,  "  the  word  of  Jehovah  came 

*  I  Cor.  xiv.  1 ;  Acts  xx.  10.        t  2  Tim.  iv.  20 ;  Phii.  ii.  27 ;  1  Tim.  v.  23 
J  Eph.  iii.  4,  5;  iv.  11  ;  Rom.  xvi.  25—27.  §  Acts  ii.  4. 


CATECHISM.  303 

losuchaone(>i^s^  rtTfT' '1iT^n''t")  "The  tenth  year. 
at  the  twelfth  day  of  the  tenth  month,  the  word  of  Jehovah 
canie  to  me/'  said  the  prophet.*  "  In  the  fifteenth  year 
of  the  reign  of  Tiberius,  the  word  of  God  came  to 
John,  son  of  Zacharias."  (e'^e'reTo  ^rifia  Qeov  sni  lanii- 
vr^v  ;)f  "  and  on  the  eighth  day,  Zacharias,  his  father, 
was  filled  with  the  Holv  Spirit,  and  prophesied,  say- 
ing .  ."t 

Thus  then,  we  should  not  think  that  the  divine  infalli- 
bility of  the  language  of  the  prophets  (and  even  of  the 
Apostles.)  continued  beyond  the  time  of  accomplishing 
their  miraculous  task,  or  that  in  which  the  Spirit  made 
them  speak  independently  of  Theopncusty,  they  were 
most  frequently  illuminated,  sanctified,  guarded  by  God 
as  every  holy  believer  in  our  day  might  be  ;  but  then, 
they  spake  no  longer  as,  '•  moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost ;" 
their  words  might  still  be  worthy  of  the  most  respect- 
ful attention  ;  but  it  was  then  a  saint  who  spake  ;  it  was 
no  longer  God  :  they  had  again  become  follible. 

XTII.  Can  we  cite  examples  of  this  fallibility  of  their 
language,  independently  of  Theopneusty  ? 

Such  examples  are  numerous.  In  the  Scriptures  we 
often  see  men,  who  were  for  a  time  the  mouth  of  Je- 
hovah, afterward  becoming  false  prophets,  and  falsely 
pretending,  after  the  Spirit  had  ceased  to  speak  by  them, 
that  they  still  uttered  the  words  of  the  most  High  ;  "  al- 
though the  Lord  had  not  sent  them,  neither  commanded 
them,  nor  spoken  unto  them."  "  They  spake  a  vision 
of  their  own  heart,  and  were  then  no  more  the  mouth 
of  the  Lord."§ 

Without  even  speaking  here  of  such  wicked  men,  as 

•  Jer.  i.  I :  xxix.  1.  and  elsewliere.  T  Luke  iii.  1,  2. 

X  Luke  L  59—67;  41,  42.  §  .ler.  xiv.  14  ;  xxiii.  11,  15 ;  Ezek.  xiii.  2,  3. 


304  CATECHISM. 

the  profane  Saul  or  Balaam,  who  were  for  a  long  time 
numbered  among  the  prophets,  can  it  be  thought  thai 
all  the  words  of  king  David  are  infallible  during  the 
whole  of  that  long  year  which  he  passed  in  adultery  ? 
Yet  these,  say  the  Scriptures,  are  "  the  lai^t  words  of 
David,  the  sweet  singer  of  Israel:  the  Spirit  of  the 
Lord  spake  by  me,  and  his  word  was  in  my  tongue."* 
Can  it  be  thought  that  all  the  words  of  the  prophet 
Solomon  were  still  infallible,  when  he  fell  into  idolatry 
in  his  old  age,  and  the  safety  of  his  soul  became  a  pro- 
blem to  the  Church  of  God?  Yet  farther,  to  come 
down  to  the  holy  apostles  a^nd  jjrnphets  of  Christf  can 
it  be  thought  that  all  the  language  of  Paul  himself  was 
infallible,  and  that  he  could  still  say  that  Christ  spake 
by  him,|  while  there  was  a  sharp  contention  ('Txoof(;CT</65) 
between  him  and  Barnabas  ?§  Or,  when  mistaking  in 
the  midst  of  the  Council,  the  person  of  the  high  priest, 
he  '•  insulted  the  prince  of  his  people,"  and  cried  ,  God 
shall  smite  thee  thou  whited  wall  !  Or  yet  again,  (as 
some  doubt  may  rest  on  the  character  of  this  reproof,) 
can  it  be  thought  that  all  the  words  of  the  holy  apostle 
Peter  were  infallible,  when  at  Antioch,  he  showed 
himself  "so  reprehensible"  i^nuTpyiMouho;  ;')  when  he 
feared  the  messengers  of  St.  James  ;  when  he  used  hy- 
pocrisy ;  and  when  he  compelled  the  apostle  Paul,  "to 
resist  him  face  to  face  in  the  presence  of  all,  because  he 
walked  not  uprightly  according  to  the  tiuth  of  the  Gos- 
pel," (oi)x  T^f  oodonodtjaug  .?) 

XIV.  What  inference  should  we  draw  from  this  first 
point  of  diffin-ence  between  illumination  and  inspiration, 
as  to  the  duration  of  these  gifts? 

•2  Sam.  xxiii.  1,2.  t  Eph.  iii.  5. 

J  2  Cor.  xiii.  3.  §  Acts  xv.  33. 


CATECHISM.  305 

We  must  conclude: 

1.  That  these  two  operations  of  the  Holy  Spirit  differ 
in  essence,  and  not  in  degree  only  ; 

2.  That  the  infallibility  of  the  sacred  writers  has  de- 
pend" d  not  on  their  illumination  (which,  although 
granted  in  an  extraordinary  measure  to  some  among 
them,  was  nevertheless  common  to  all  the  saints,)  but, 
on  thrir  Theopneusty  only; 

3.  That  the  Theopneustic  words,  having  been  all 
miraculously  given,  are  all  likewise  the  words  of  God; 

4.  That  our  faith  in  each  portion  of  the  Bible,  being 
no  longer  founded  on  the  illumination  of  the  writers, 
but  on  the  inspiration  of  their  writings,  need  never  give 
itself  to  the  perplexing  study  of  their  internal  state,  of 
the  degree  of  their  light,  or  of  their  sanctification  ;  but 
must  lean  on  God  in  every  thing,  on  man  in  nothing. 

XV.  If  the  illumination  and  inspiration  of  the  pro- 
ph(ts  and  apostles  has  varied  so  much  in  the  duration 
of  these  gifts,  how  has  it  been  as  lo  the  degree  to  which 
they  possessed  them  1 

Illumination  has  degrees  ;  Theopneusty  cannot  admit 
them.  A  prophet  is  more  or  less  enlightened  of  God  ; 
but  his  word  is  not  more  or  less  inspired.  It  is  inspired, 
or  it  is  not ;  it  is  of  God,  or  it  is  not  ol  God.  In  it  there 
is  neither  measure  nor  degree,  neither  increase  nor  de- 
crease. David  was  illuminated  of  God  ;  John  the  Bap- 
tist was  so  far  more  than  David  ;  a  simple  christian  may 
be  so  in  a  higher  degree  than  was  John  the  B;iptist ;  an 
apostle  still  exceeded  this  christian  ;  and  Jesus  Christ  is 
yet  in  this,  superior  to  this  apostle.  But  the  inspired 
word  of  David,  what  do  I  say?  the  inspired  word  of 
even  Balaam,  is  of  God  equally  with  that  of  John  the 
Baptist,  of  Paul,  or  of  Jesus  Christ !  It  is  the  word 
26* 


306  CATECHISM. 

OF  God.  The  most  illuminated  saint  cannot  speak  by 
inspiration ;  while  the  most  wicked,  the  most  ignorant 
and  the  most  impure  of  men  can  prophesy  ;  for  "  he 
speaks  not  of  himself  (ugo'  eavrov,  oux  itnev^)  but  by 
Theopneusly  ((UAd  nuocprirevcTai.)*  In  a  truly  re- 
generated man  are  always  found  the  divine  and  the  hu- 
man spirit,  which  act  at  the  same  time,  the  one  enlight- 
ening, the  other  obscuring;  and  illumination  will  in- 
crease in  proportion  as  the  action  of  the  Divine  Spirit 
surpasses  that  of  the  human.  These  two  elements  have 
also  existed  in  the  prophets,  and  above  all.  in  the  apos- 
tles. But  thanks  to  God,  our  faith  in  the  language  of 
the  Scripture  depends  not  on  the  unknou'n  issue  of  the 
conflict  between  the  flesh  and  the  spirit  in  the  soul  of 
the  sacred  writers.  Our  faith  ascends  directly  to  the 
heart  of  God. 

XVI.  Can  great  evil  result  from  the  doctrine  accord- 
ing to  which,  the  language  of  inspiration  would  be  but 
the  human  expression  of  a  superhuman  revelation  ;  and 
if  v/e  may  so  express  ourselves,  but  a  natural  reflection 
of  a  supernatural  illumination? 

One  of  these  two  evils  must  ever  result  from  it: 
either  the  oracles  of  God  will  be  brought  down  to  a 
level  with  the  words  of  the  saints ;  or  these  will  be 
raised  to  a  level  with  the  Scriptures.  This  is  a  fatal, 
but  inevitable  consequence ;  the  one  or  the  other  form 
of  which  is  reproduced  in  every  age.  All  truly  regen- 
erated men,  being  enlightened  by  the  Holy  Spirit ;  it 
follows,  according  to  this  doctrine,  that  they  all  possess, 
though  in  different  degrees,  perhaps,  the  element  of  in- 
spiration ;  so  that,  according  to  the  arbitrary  idea  you 
shall  have  formed  of  their  spiritual  condition,  you  will 

*  Juhnxi.51. 


CATECHISM.  307 

be  inevitably  led,  now  to  assimilate  them  to  the  sacred 
writers,  now  to  raise  them  to  the  rank  of  men  inspired 
from  above. 

XVII.  Can  instances  be  produced  of  religious  com- 
munities, where  the  first  of  these  evils  has  been  realized? 
I  mean,  where  men  have  been  led,  by  this  means,  to 
lower  the  Scriptures  to  a  level  with  the  words  of  the 
saints? 

All  the  theories  of  the  learned  among  the  Protestants, 
which  suppose  some  mixture  of  error  in  the  Scriptures, 
are  founded  upon  this  doctrine; — from  Semler  and  Ani- 
mon,  to  Eichhorn,  Paulus,  Gabler,  Schruster,  and  Res- 
tig  ; — from  De  Wette,  to  the  more  respectful  systems 
of  Michaelis,  of  Rosenmuler,  Scaliger,  Capellus,  John 
Le  Clerc,  or  Vossius.  According  to  these  systems,  the 
divine  light,  by  which  the  intellect  of  the  sacred  writers 
was  illuminatt'd,  might  experience  a  partial  eclipse,  by 
the  unavoidable  influence  of  their  natural  infirmities,  of 
a  defect  of  memory,  of  an  innocent  ignorance,  of  a  pop- 
ular prejudice  ;  so  that  their  writings  bear  the  mark  of 
it,  and  we  can  there  discover  where  the  shades  have 
fallen. 

XVIII.  Can  we  show  that  there  are  also  religious 
societies,  in  which  the  second  of  these  evils  has  been 
consummated  ;  I  mean,  where,  from  having  chosen  to 
confound  inspiration  with  illumination,  they  have  raised 
saints  and  learned  men  to  the  rank  of  the  theopneustic, 
or  inspired  men? 

For,  specimens  of  this,  we  might  adduce,  above  all 
others,  the  Jews  and  the  Latins. 

XIX.  What  have  the  Jews  done? 

They  have  regarded  the  rabbins  of  the  ages  succeed- 
ing the  period  of  the  dispersion,  as  gifted  with  an  infal- 


308  CATECHISM. 

libility,  that  has  placed  them  on  a  level  with  (if  not 
above,)  Moses  and  the  prophets.  They  have,  without 
doubt,  attributed  a  species  of  divine  inspiration  to  the  sa- 
cred writings  ;  but  they  have  forbidden  any  explanations 
of  the  oracles,  except  those  furnished  by  their  traditions. 
They  have  called  the  immense  body  of  those  command- 
ments of  men,  the  oral  laio^  (pjg  D^^lDtiJ  H^Tri)  ^^^  ^^'^' 
trine^  or  the  Talmud^  (TT/^bil)  disting-uishing  it  as 
Mishia^  or  Second  Law,  (nDt2?)2)  ^"^'^  ^^  Gemarah  ; 
complement,  or  perfection,  (55^7^^)-  They  have  pro- 
claimed it  as  transmitted  by  God  to  Moses,  by  Moses  to 
Joshua,  by  Joshua  to  the  prophets,  by  the  prophets  to 
Esdras,  by  Esdras  to  the  Doctors  of  the  great  Syna- 
gogue, and  by  these  to  the  Rabbis  Antigonus^  Sncchoj 
Skemaia^  Hiliel  Schammai  ;  until,  at  last,  Judas  the 
holy  committed  it  to  the  Traditions,  or  Repetitions  of 
the  law,  (j*|Tj*CJ^  devTEQ^aetg^)  which,  in  later  times, 
with  their  Com.mentary,  or  Complement,  (the  Gema- 
rah^) formed  the  Talmud  of  Jerusalem,  and  then  that 
of  Babylon. 

"  One  of  the  greatest  obstacles  we  find  among  the 
Jews,"  saj^s  the  missionary  M'Caul,  "  is  their  invinci- 
ble prejudice  in  favor  of  their  traditions  and  commenta- 
ries ;  so  that  we  cannot  persuade  them  to  purchase  our 
Bibles  without  notes  or  comments."* 

"The  law,  they  say,  is  salt;  the  Mishna,  pepper; 
the  Talmuds,  spices."  "  The  Scriptures  are  water  ;  the 
Mishna,  wine ;  the  Gemarah,  spiced  wine."  "  My  son," 
says  Rabbi  Isaac,  "  learn  to  pay  more  attention  to  the 
word  of  the  Scribes,  than  to  the  word  of  the  law." 
"  Turn  your  children,"  (said  Rabbi  Eleazar,  upon  his 
death-bed,  to  his  scholars,  who  were  asking  him  the 

•  Letters  from  Warsaw,  March  22,  1827. 


CATECHISM.  309 

way  of  life,)  '•  turn  your  children  from  the  study  of  the 
Bible,  and  put  them  at  the  feet  of  the  Sages."  "  Learn, 
my  son,  (says  Rabbi  Jacob,)  that  the  words  of  the 
Scribes  are  more  excellent  than  those  of  the  Prophets."* 

XX.  And  what  has  resulted  from  these  enormities  ? 

By  them,  millions  and  millions  of  immortal  souls, 
however  far  they  have  wandered  on  the  earth,  however 
wearied  and  heavy  laden,  however  despised  and  perse- 
cuted in  every  place,  have  been  able  to  carry,  among 
all  the  nations  of  the  world,  the  book  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment untouched  and  complete,  and  not  to  tease  reading 
it  in  Hebrew,  every  Sabbath,  in  thousands  of  syna- 
gogues, for  eighteen  hundred  years ;  .  .  .  .  yet  without 
being  able  to  recognise  in  it,  that  Jewish  Messiah  whom 
we  all  adore,  and  the  knowledge  of  whom  would  be 
their  instant  deliverance,  as  it  is  one  day  to  be  their  hap- 
piness and  their  glory  I 

"  And  Jesus  said  unto  them,  full  well  ye  reject  the 
commandment  of  God,  that  ye  may  keep  your  own 

traditions."! 

XXr    And  what  have  the  Latins  done  ? 

They  have  considered  the  fathers,  the  popes,  and  the 
Councils  of  the  successive  ages  of  the  Church  of  Rome, 
as  endowed  with  an  infallibility  which  puts  them  upon 
the  level  with,  if  not  above  Jesus,  and  the  prophets  and 
apostles.  They  have,  it  is  true,  greatly  diflered  fi'om 
each  other  upon  the  doctrine  of  the  inspiration  of  the 
Scriptures  ;  and  the  faculties  of  Douay  and  Louvain, 

*  In  Uie  .Tenisalem  Talmud.— Encycl.    method.,  at  the  word  Juifs. 

t  M;irk  vii.  9,  13,  and  Matt.  xv.  3.  9.  The  Jews  of  the  present  day  are 
besiuiiiMg,  at  length,  to  recognize  the  evil  character  of  their  traditions. 
"The  time  has  arrived,"  says  the  Jewish  doctor  Creisenach,  "when  the 
Talnind  will  bring  the  Jewish  religion  to  a  declining  state  of  the  most  hu- 
miliating character,  if  every  Jewish  teacher  do  not  promptly  declare  that 
its  statutes  are  of  human  origin,  and  admit  of  change." 


316  CATECHfSM. 

for  example,  have  set  themselves  strongly*  against  the 
opinion  of  the  Jesuits,  who  were  unwilling  to  see  in  the 
operation  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  any  thing  more  than  a  di- 
rection, which  preserved  the  sacred  writers  from  error  : 
but  they  have  all  forbidden  any  other  explanation  of  the 
Holy  Scriptures,  than  that  which  is  according  to  the 
traditions.!  They  believed  they  had  a  right  to  say,  in 
all  their  Councils,  with  the  apostles  and  prophets  of 
Jerusalem  ;  "  It  hath  seemed  good  to  the  Holy  Spirit 
and  to  us."  They  have  declared  that  it  belonged  to 
them  to  jud^  the  true  sense  of  the  Holy  Scriptures. 
They  have  called  the  immense  body  of  these  human 
commandments,  the  oral  Latv,  unwritten  traditions,  the. 
umvritten  Law.  They  have  styled  them  :  transmitted 
from  God,  and  dictated  by  the  mouth  of  Jesus  Christ,  or 
of  the  Holy  Spirit,  by  a  continuid  succession. 

"  Seeing,"  says  the  Council  of  Trent,J  "  that  the  sav- 
ing truth,  and  the  discipline  of  manners  is  contained  in 
the  written  books  and  the  unwrittf-n  traditions,  which 
having  been  received  by  the  Aposths,  from  the  mouth 
of  Jesus  Christ,  or  the  inspiration  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  in 
the  succession  of  time,  have  been  handed  down  even  to 
us  ;  following  the  example  of  the  Apostolic  Fathers, 
the  Council  receives  with  the  same  affection  and  rever- 
ence (pari  pietatis  et  reverentias  aff'tctu,)  and  honors  all 
the  books  of  the  Old  and  New  'J'estamfnt,  (seeing  God 
is  their  author,)  and  likewise  the  traditions  concerning 
faith  and  practice,  as  having  been  dictated  by  the  mouth 
of  Jesus  Christ  or  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  preserved  in 

*  Censure  of  1588. 

T  Council  of  Trent,  Sess.  4,2(1.  derree  of  28th  April,  154G.  Bellarmin, 
De  Eccl.  lih.  iii.  cap.  14  ;  lib.  iv.  cap.  3, 5,  6,  7,  8.  Cof on,  111),  ii.  Cap.  24,  34, 
35.     Du  Perron  contre  Tileniis. 

t  Council  of  Trent.     1st  decree.     Session  4. 


CATECHISM.  311 

the  Catholic  Church  by  a  perpetual  succession."  "  If 
any  one  does  not  receive  the  said  books  entirely,  and 
with  all  their  parts,  as  holy  and  canonical,  as  they  have 
been  accustomed  to  be  read  in  the  Catholic  Church,  and 
in  the  ancient  vulgar  translation,"  (that  of  Jerome,* 
which  abounds,  especially  in  Job  and  the  Psalms,  in 
very  serious  and  very  glaring  faults,  and  has  even  been 
abundantly  corrected  in  after  times  by  other  Popes.) 
"  or,  ingood  earnest,  despises  the  said  traditions,  let  him 
be  accursed!" 

They  have  also  put  the  bulls  of  the  Bishop  of  Rome 
and  the  decrees  of  their  synods  above  the  Scriptures. 
'•  The  Holy  Scriptures,"  they  say,  "  do  not  contain  all 
that  is  necessary  to  salvation,  and  are  not  sufficient."! 
"  They  are  obscure."^  "  It  is  not  for  the  people  to 
read  the  Holy  Scriptures. §  We  must  receive  with 
obedience  of  faith,  many  things  that  are  not  in  the  Scrip- 
tures."! We  must  serve  God  according  to  the  tradi- 
tions of  the  elders."*1F 

The  Bull  Exsiirge  of  Leo.  X.**  puts  in  the  number 
of  Luther's  heresies,  his  saying :  "  that  it  is  not  in  the 
power  of  the  church  or  Pope  to  establish  articles  of 
faith." 

The  Bull  unigenitusW  condemns  forever,  as  being 
"  respectively  false,  captious,  scandalous,  rash,  perni- 

*  It  was  in  vain  that  at  the  Council,  the  Abbey  Isidor  Clarius  represent- 
ed that  there  was  rashness  in  attributing  inspiration  to  a  writer  who  him- 
self declared  that  he  had  none.     Fra  Paolo,  Tom.  1,  liv.  ii.  Sec.  .51. 

t  Bellarmin  de  verbo  Dei,  lib.  iv. 

X  Id.  lib.  iii.     Charon,  Verite  3.     Coton  lib.  ii.  Cap.  19.     Bayle  Traite. 

§  Bellarmin,  de  verbo  Dei,  lib.  ii.  cap.  19. 

I!  Bellarmin.  lib.  iv.  Cap.  3.  Coton,  lib.  ii.  Cap.  24.  Du  Perron  contre 
Tileniis. 

^  Bellarmin, lib.  iv.  Cap.  5.  Coton,  lib.  ii.  Cap.  34,35.  Councilor  Trent, 
Sess.  4.  •*  15-20  Con  no.  Harduini,  T.  ix.  p.  1893. 

n  Of  Clement  XI.  of  September  8,  1713. 


312  CATECHISM. 

cious,  suspected  of  heresies,  savoring  of  heresies,  here- 
tical, impious,  blasphemous,  etc."  the  following  propo- 
sitions :  '•  It  is  useful,  at  all  times,  in  all  places  and  for 
all  sorts  of  persons  to  study  the  Scriptures,  and  to  know 
their  spirit,  their  piety  and  their  mysteries  ;"  (Luther  on 
I  Cor.  xvi.  5.*)  '•  The  reading  of  the  Holy  Scriptures 
by  a  man  of  business,  shows  that  it  is  for  all  the  world  ;" 
(Luther  on  Acts,  viii.  28.  f)  '"  The  holy  obscurity  of  the 
word  God  is  not  a  reason  why  the  laity  should  not  read 
it;"  (on  Acts,  viii.  31.")  "  The  Sabbath  ought  to  be 
sanctified  by  the  reading  of  books  of  piety,  and  especially 
of  the  Holy  Scriptures.  It  is  the  milk  which  God  him- 
self, who  knows  our  hearts,  has  given  them.  It  is  dan- 
gerous to  attempt  to  wean  him  from  it ;"  (on  Acts,  xv. 
21.)  '■  It  is  an  illusion  to  imagine  that  the  knowledge 
of  the  mysteries  of  religion  ought  not  to  be  communi- 
cated to  that  sex,  (the  female)  by  the  reading  of  the  holy 
books,  after  that  example  of  the  confidence  v/ith  which 
Jesus  shows  himself  to  the  Samaritan  woman."  "  It  is 
not  from  the  simplicity  of  woman,  but  from  the  proud 
sciejice  of  man,  that  the  abuse  of  the  Scriptures  has 
arisen,  and  that  have  arisen  the  heresies  ;"  (on  John  iv. 
26.)  "  It  is,  to  shut  the  mouth  of  Jesus  Christ  to  chris- 
tians, to  snatch  from  their  hands  the  holy  book,  or  to 
keep  it  closed  to  them,  in  depriving  them  of  the  means 
of  understanding  it ;"  (1  Thes.  v.  2.)  "  To  forbid  the 
reading  of  the  Bible  to  christians,  is  to  refuse  the  light 
to  the  children  of  light,  and  to  inflict  on  them  a  kind  of 
excommunication,"  (Luke,  xi.  33. J) 

More  recently,  in  1824,  the  Encyclical  letters  of 
Pope  Leo  XII.,  complain  grievously  of  the  Bible  So- 
cieties, "  which  violate  say  they,  the  traditions  of  the 

'  Propos.  79.  t  Prop.  80.  J  Prop.  82,  83,  84,  85. 


CATECHISM.  313 

Fathers,  and  the  Council  of  Trent,  in  scattering  the 
Scriptures  in  the  vulgar  languages  of  all  the  nations," 
'^  You  are  aware,  venerable  brethren,  that  a  certain  So- 
ciety called  the  Bible  Society  is  audaciously  wandering- 
through  the  world  ;  which  aims,  in  contempt  of  the  tra- 
ditions of  the  most  holy  fathers  (!!!)  and  contrary  to 
the  well  known  decree  of  the  Council  of  Trent,  to  trans- 
late vigorously  and  by  every  means,  or  rather  to  per- 
vert the  Scriptures  into  the  common  languages  of  the 
nations."*  "  in  order  to  turn  away  this  pi  st,"  adds  he, 
'•our  predecessors  have  published  many  constitutions, 
.  .  .  tending  to  show  how  pernicious  to  faith  and  prac- 
tice is  this  perfidious  invention."! 

XXII.   And  vvhat  is  the  result  of  these  enormities? 

It  is  that,  by  them,  millions  and  millions  of  immortal 
souls  in  France,  in  Spain,  in  Italy,  in  German}'',  ia 
America,  even  in  the  Indies,  although  they  possess 
every  where,  the  books  of  the  Old  and  New  Testa- 
ments uninjured  and  complete,  although  they  have  not 
ceased  to  read  them  in  Latin  every  Sabbath,  in  thou- 
sands of  temples,  during  twelve  hundred  years,  .  ,  . 
have  been  turned  away  from  the  fountain  of  life  ;  have 
given,  like  the  Jews, '-more  attention  to  the  words  of 
the  scribes  than  to  those  of  the  law,"  have  turned  away 
their  children,  according  to  the  counsel  of  Eleazar, 
"  from  the  reading  of  the  Bible,  to  place  them  at  the 
feet  of  the  wise  men  ;"  have  found,  with  Rabbi  Jacob, 
'•  the  words  of  the  scribes  more  excelltnt  than  those  of 

•  "Non  vos  latet,  venerandi  fratres,  Societatem  qiiamtiam,  dictam  vulgo 
BiBLicAM,  per  totum  orbem  audaciter  vagari,  quae,  spretis  S.  S.  Patriim 
traditionibcs  (!  !  !)  et  contra  notissiimim  Tridentini  conoilii  decretum,  in 
id  collatis  viribus  ac  modis  omnibus  iiifendit,  iil  in  vulgares  liiignas  natio 
nam  omnium  sacra  vertantur  vel  poiius  pervertanfur  Biblia." 

I  Ut  ostendatur  quantopere  fidei  et  moribus  vaferriniuni  hocce  inventum 
noxium  bii  ! 

26 


314  CATECHISM 

the  prophets."  It  is  thus  that  they  have  been  able  to 
maintain  for  twelve  centuries,  doctrines  the  most  con- 
trary to  the  word  of  God,*  upon  the  worship  of  images  ;t 
upon  the  exaltation  of  the  priesthood ;  upon  their 
forced  celibacy  ;  upon  their  auricular  confessions  ;  upon 
the  absolution  which  they  dare  to  give ;  upon  the  ma- 
gical power  which  they  attribute,  even  to  the  impurest 
of  them,  of  creating  their  God  by  the  two  Latin  words, 
opere  ojperalo ;  upon  an  ecclesiastical  priesthood  of 
which  the  Scriptures  have  never  spoken  :  upon  the  in- 
vocation of  the  dead  ;  upon  the  spiritual  preeminence 
of  the  city  which  the  Bible  has  called  Babylon  :  upon 
the  unknown  tongues  in  worship  ;  upon  the  celestial 
empire  of  the  blessed  but  humble  woman,  to  whom 
Jesus  himself  said  ;  "  woman,  what  have  I  to  do  with 
thee  ?" — upon  the  mass  ;  upon  the  forbidding  the  cup 
to  the  laity ;  upon  the  forbidding  the  Scriptures  to  the 
people  ;  upon  the  indulgences  :  upon  purgatory  ;  upon 
the  universal  episcopacy  of  an  Italian  priest  ;  upon  the 
forbidding  of  meats  ;  so  that  just  as  they  annul  the  only 
priesthood  of  the  Son  of  Man,  in  establishing  other 
priesthoods  by  thousands  ;  just  as  they  annihilate  his 
divinity  in  recognising  thousands  of  demi-gods  or  dead 
men,  present  in  every  place,  hearing  every  where  the 
'most  secret  prayers  of  men,  protecting  cities  and  king- 
doms, accomplishing  miracles  in  favor  of  their  adorers  ; 
.  .  .  they  in  the  same  manner  annihilate  the  inspiration 
of  the  Scriptures,  in  recognising  by  thousands,  other 

*  Exodus,  XX.  4.  5. 

t  Qujsqiiis  elan^uerit  erga  venerahilium  imaginum  adorfitionem  {npoa- 
/n5»'r)ff(»')'<iinranailipmarizat  saiicta  nostra  et  niiiversalis  synodus  !  "Who- 
soever shall  begin  to  be  itKlilfcreiU  toward  the  adoration  of  the  venerable 
images,  liirn  does?  our  lioly  and  general  synod  anathemafize  !"  (was  it 
written  to  the  Emperor,  in  the  name  of  all  the  Second  Council  of  Nice.) 
Cone.  torn.  vii.  p.  583.) 


CATECHISM.  315 

writings  which  share  its  divine  authority,  and  which 
surpass  and  engulf  its  eternal  infallibility  ! 

It  is  against  just  such  pretensions  made  by  the  here- 
tics of  his  day,  that  St.  Ireneus  said  ;  "  when  we  would 
convince  them  by  the  Scriptures,  they  treat  the  Scrip- 
tures as  if  they  were  imperfect,  or  wanting  authority,  or 
uncertain,  and  as  if  the  truth  could  not  be  found  there 
without  the  aid  of  tradition,  because  the  latter  was  given^ 
not  by  writing,  but  by  the  living  voice."* 

"  Well  do  ye  make  void  the  commandment  of  God 
by  your  tradition  !"  said  the  Savior. f     (Mark  vii.  9.) 

XXI I.I.  Without  pretending  in  any  way  to  explain 
how  the  Holy  Spirit  may  have  dictated  the  thoughts 
and  the  words  of  the  Scriptures  (since  the  knowledge  of 
this  mystery  is  neither  given,  nor  required.)  what  may 
we  recognise  in  this  divine  action  ? 

Two  things  ;  first,  an  impv/se^  that  is  an  action  upon 
the  will  of  the  men  of  God,  to  lead  them  to  speak  and 
to  write ;  and  secondly,  a  suggesL'wn^  that  is  to  say, 
an  action  upon  their  understanding  and  upon  their 
organs ;  to  produce,  ?'?i  them,  more  or  less  exalted 
notions  of  the  truth  which  they  were  about  to  utter  ; 
and  from  them,  human  expressions  the  mc-st  divinely 
adapted  to  express  the  eternal  thought  of  the  Holy 
Spirit. 

XXIV.  Must  we  yet  admit  that  the  sacred  writers 
were  but  the  pens,  the  hands,  the  secretaries  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  ? 

They  have  been,  without  doubt,  the  pens,  the  hands, 
the  secretaries  ;  but  they  have  been  almost  always,  and 
in  different  degrees,  living  pens,  intelligent  hands,  docile 

•  Adv.  Hares,  lib.  iii.  cap.  2. 

t  Bene  irritum  faciiis  praeceptnm  Dei,  ut  traditionem  vestram  servetis! 


316  CATECHISM. 

secretaries,  moved  and  sanctified  by  the  truths  they  ut- 
tered. But  in  order  that  even  in  these  cases,  our  faith 
might  rest  on  God,  and  not  lean  upon  man,  the  Holy 
Spirit  has  chosen  on  many  other  occasions,  to  employ 
ignorant  hands,  inert  pens,  and  secretaries  without  light 
and  without  holiness. 

XXV.  At  the  same  time,  has  not  the  word  of  God 
often  been  written  in  reference  to  particular  occasions  ? 

Yes,  without  doubt ;  and  the  occasion  was  as  much 
prepared  by  God,  as  the  writer.  "  The  Holy  Spirit," 
says  Claude,*  "  used  the  pen  of  the  evangelists,  .  .  . 
and  of  the  prophets.  He  furnished  them  the  occasions 
of  writing  ;  he  gave  them  the  desire  and  the  strength  for 
it ;  the  matter,  the  form,  the  order,  the  arrangement, 
the  expression,  are  of  his  immediate  inspiration  and  of 
his  direction." 

XXVI.  But  may  we  not  clearly  recognise,  in  tne 
greater  part  of  the  sacred  books,  the  individual  charac- 
ter of  the  writer  ? 

We  are  careful  not  to  overlook  it ;  and  on  the  con- 
trary, we  admire  this  feature.  The  individual  character 
so  far  as  it  comes  from  God,  and  not  from  sin  and  the 
fall,  was  prepared  and  sanctified  of  God,  for  the  work  to 
which  God  had  destined  it. 

XXVn.  Ought  we  then  to  think  that  every  part  of 
each  one  of  the  Sacred  books  of  the  holy  Scripture  was 
equally  inspired  of  God  1 

The  Scripture,  in  describing  itself,  admits  no  distinc- 
tion. All  the  sacred  books,  without  any  exception,  are 
the  word  of  the  Lord.  The  entire  Scripture,  says 
Saint  Paul  (^nuaa  yv^qn'/,)  is  inspired  of  God. 

This  declaration,  we  have  already  said,  Ts  susceptible 

•  Claude,  posthumous  works,  vol.  iv.  p.  228. 


CATECHISM.  317 

of  two  constructions,  according  as  we  prefer  to  place  the 
verb  understood  before  or  after  the  Greek  word  which 
we  here  translate  by  inspired  of  God.  Both  these  con- 
structions irrefutably  establish  that,  in  the  thought  of 
\he  apostle,  all,  without  exception,  in  each  book  of  the 
Scriptures,  is  indited  by  the  Spirit  of  God.  In  fact,  in 
both,  the  apostle  equally  attests  that  these  sacred  let- 
ters (r«  itfju  yQuu/Liuju.)  of  which  he  had  just  spoken  to 
Timothy,  are  all,  theopneustic  Scriptures. 

Now,  we  know  that  in  the  days  of  Jesus  Christ,  the 
whole  church  designated  only  one  and  the  samk  col- 
lection OF  BOOKS,  as  the  Scripture.,  or  the  Scriptures., 
or  the  holy  letters.,  or  the  law  and  the  prophets.,  {yQ''^TV^^ 
or  ri  )'o'i{f?;,t  or  (it  ygoKfal^  or  6  voi^og  aal  ol  nqocpiiTai.^ 
or  7d  If-qix  yoa!.iiiuTu.\\)  They  were  the  22  Sacred 
Books  which  the  Jews  received  from  their  prophets^ 
and  about  which  they  were  perfectly  agreed.l" 

This  entire  and  perfect  theopneusty  of  the  Jewish 
Scriptures  was  so  entirely,  in  the  days  of  Jesus  Christy 
the  doctrine  of  all  this  ancient  people  of  God  (as  it  was 
that  of  Jesus  Christ,  of  Timothy,  and  of  St.  Paul,)  that 
wc  read  this  testimony  of  it  in  the  Jewish  general,  Jo- 
sephus  (who  had  already  attained  to  his  thirtieth  year,** 
at  the  epoch  when  the  apostle  Paul  was  writing  his  se- 
cond epistle  to  Timothy  )  Never,  says  he,  in  speaking 
of  '•  the  22  books"tt  of  the  Old  Testament,  which  he 

•  2  Peter,  1-20  ;  John,  xix.  37.  t  John  x.  35 ;  xvij.  12. 

X  John  V.  39  ;  Matt.  xxi.  42 ;  xxvi.  54 ;  Rom.  xv.  4  ;  1  Cor.  xv.  3. 

§  Acts  xxiv.  14  ;  Luke  xvi.  16,  29,  31 ;  Matt.  v.  17,  18;  John  x.  34. 

E  2  Tim.  iii.  15,  16.  H  See  Krebs  &  Lcesner  or  2  Tim.  iii.  15. 

•*  He  was  born  in  the  year  37.     See  his  life.    Edit.  Aurelise  Allobr,  p.  999l 

tt  AffJiinst  Appion,  lib.  1,  p.  1037.  d,vo  (idva  rrpdi  toU  eiK'XJi  [iv(i\tau 
Our  Bibles  reckon  thirty-nine  books  of  the  Old  Tes-tament,  but  Josephus 
and  the  early  Jews,  by  combinins  the  books  of  Samuel,  the  Kings  and 
Chronicles;  and  by  putting  Ruth  with  Judges,  as  a  single  bo(ik  ETa 
with  Nehemiah,  Jeremiah  with  the  Lamentati©ns ;  and,^lttbtly,  Hosea  wiltt 

2T* 


318  CATECHISM. 

calls  jn  id  la  Yo<xauaru,  the  Scriptures,  as  St.  Paul  here 
calls  them  la  iegu  ygauyuju,  the  holy  Scriptures, 
"  Never,  although  so  many  ages  have  already  passed 
away,  has  any  one  dared  either  to  take  away  from 
^it,  or  TO  ADD  to  it,  or  to  transpose  any  part  of  it;* 
'for  it  is  for  all  the  Jevs^s,  as  a  thought  born  with 
them  [TIA^I  ds  avincpvioi^  egilv^^  from  their  earliest  in- 
fancy,! to  call  them  the  instructions  of  God,  to  abide 
in  them,  and,  if  necessary,  to  die  with  joy  to  maintain 
them." 

"  They  are  given  us  (he  says  again)  by  the  inspira- 
tion which  comes  from  God  (;{«Td  t^»^  Bniufoiav  tvJi^ 
(kno  10V  dtov.)  But  as  to  the  other  books  composed 
after  the  time  of  Artaxerxes,  they  are  not  regarded  as 
worthy  of  the  same  faith."  J 

We  do  not  cite  these  passages  of  Josephus  here  as  an 
authority  for  our  faith,  but  as  a  historical  testimony, 
which  shews  us  in  what  sense  the  Apostle  Paul  spoke, 
and  which  attests  to  us  that  in  mentioning  the  sacred 
letters  (xd  isqu  ygdufiara^)  and  in  saying  that  they  are 
all  Theop'/ieustic  writings,  he  would  attest  to  us,  that 
there  was  nothing  in  the  Sacred  books,  which  was  not 
dictated  by  God. 

Now,  since  the  books  of  the  New  Testament  are  teoa 
YQ('iujLt(xja,  holy  Scriptures^  the  Scripture^  the  hnly  let- 
ters, as  well  as  those  of  the  Old ;  since  the  Apostles 
have  placed  their  writings,  and  St.  Peter,  for  example, 
has   placed   all    the    epistles   of    Paul  {ndiuug    lag 

the  eleven  minor  prophecies  wliich  follow  him,  reduce  the  number  of 
their  sacred  hooks  to  seventeen. 

•  Ovre  nPpL'6EINzlI  rr.c  OhStv,  ovre  ^  I'EAEIN  avT(2v,  ovre  METylGEl- 
N.-'II  Tcrn\jii}KCV. 

t  E'<(0ijj  tK  mi  Trpo'jrrii  ycviatwi  dj/o^d^iev  ui'ra  0EOY  AOTMATA.  Ac- 
cording to  others  ;  from  the  first  generation. 

i  Jlicreo}i  h  Oiixi-  tjxoiai  //((wrat. 


CATECHISM.  319 

iniajoXug,)  in  the  same  rank  as  the  other  Scriptures 
(^(b;  aul  Tu;  lomu;  FPAfliJ^  ;)  .we  must  infer  thence 
that  all  is  inspired  of  God,  in  all  the  sacred  books  of 
both  the  Old  and  the  New  Testament. 

XXVIII.  But  if  all  the  sacred  books  (id  hqa  yqau- 
fiuru)  are  theopneustic,  how  can  we  recognise  such  or 
such  a  book  as  sacred,  and  another  as  not  sacred  ? 

It  is  in  a  great  measure  a  question  altogether  his- 
torical. 

XXIX.  Yet  have  not  the  Reformed  Churches  main- 
tained that  it  was  by  the  Holy  Spirit  that  they  recog- 
nised the  divinity  of  the  sacred  books  ;  for  example,  the 
confession  of  fiith  of  the  Churches  of  France,  does  it 
not  say  in  its  fourth  article,  that,  "  we  know  these  books 
are  canonical,  and  a  very  sure  rule  for  our  faith,  not  so 
much  by  the  common  accord  and  consent  of  the  Church, 
as  by  the  testimony  and  persuasion  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
W'hich  enables  us  to  distinguish  them  from  other  eccle- 
siastical books  ?" 

This  maxim  is  perfectly  true,  if  you  apply  it  to  the 
whole  collection  of  the  sacred  books.  In  this  sense  the 
Bible  is  evidently  a  book  uuTOTTiaio;.  which  has  need 
onli/  of  ilself.  to  produce  belief  in  its  divinity  ;  for  to 
him  who  studies  it  '•  with  sincerity  and  as  before  God,"* 
it  presents  itself  with  evidence  and  by  itself,  as  a  mira- 
culous book  ;  it  reveals  the  secrets  of  the  conscience  ; 
it  discerns  the  thoughts  and  intentions  of  the  heart.  It 
has  foretold  the  future  ;  it  has  changed  the  face  of  the 
world  :  it  has  converted  souls  ;  it  has  created  the  church. 
It  produces  thus  in  the  hearts  of  men,  "a  testimony  and 
an  interior  persuasion  of  tht;  Holy  Spirit,"  which  attests 
Its  inimitable  divinity,  ind-p^nd'  ntly  of  any  human  testi- 

*  2  Cor.  ii.  17. 


320  CATECHISM. 

niony.  But  we  do  not  think  that  any  one  can  confine 
himself  to  this  mark,  to  discern  such  or  such  a  book, 
such  or  such  a  chapter,  such  or  such  a  verse  of  the 
word  of  God,  and  to  establish  its  celestial  origin.  We 
ought  to  admit  as  divine  the  entire  code  of  the  Scrip- 
tures, before  each  of  its  parts  can  have  proved  to  us  by 
itself,  that  it  is  of  God.  It  is  not  for  us  to  judge  this 
book  ;  it  is  this  book  that  shall  judge  us. 

XXX.  Yet  has  not  Luther  said*  in  starting  from  a 
principle  laid  down  by  St.  Paulf  and  by  St.  John,J  that 
"  the  touchstone  by  which  we  may  recognise  certain 
Scriptures  as  divine,  is  this  ;  do  they  preach  Christ,  or 
do  they  not  preach  him  ?"  And,  among  the  moderns, 
has  not  Dr.  Twesten  said  "  that  the  different  part  of  the 
Scriptures  are  more  or  less  inspired,  just  in  proportion 
as  they  partake  of  the  character  of  f  reaching  Christ  ; 
and  that  inspiration  extends  to  words  and  historical  state- 
ments only  in  that  which  relates  to  the  christian  con- 
science, in  that  which  comes  from  Christ,  or  that  which 
serves  to  show  us  Christ  V'^ 

Christ  is,  without  doubt,  the  way,  the  truth,  and  the 
life  ;  the  spirit  of  prophecy  without  doubt,  is  the  wit- 
ness of  Jesus  ;1|  but  this  touchstone  in  our  hands,  may 
indicate  falsely  ;  1st,  because  many  writings  speak  ad- 
mirably of  Christ,  without  being  inspired:  2dly,  be- 
cause although  every  thing,  in  the  inspired  Scriptures, 
relates  to  Jesus  Christ,  we  cannot  at  first,  detect  this  di- 
vine character  ;  and,  3dly,  in  fine  ;  because  we  ought  to 
BELIEVE,  before  sei:ing  it,  that  "  all  Scripture  is  profit- 
able for  doctrine,  for  reproof,  for  correction,  for  instruc- 

•  In  his  prefRce  to  .Tames  and  .Tiide.  t  1  Cor.  iii.  9,  10;  1  John  iv.  2. 

X  Ob  sie  Christum  treihen.  oder  nicht. 

§  Vorlesuiigen  uber  die  Dogmatik,  1829, 1.  B.  p.  4'?l-429. 

1  John  xiv.  6.    Kev.  xi.x.  10. 


CATECHISM.  321 

tion  in  righteousness  ;  that  the  man  of  God  may  be  per- 
fect, thoroughly  furnished  unto  every  good  work."* 

XXXI.  What  reasons  have  we  then  for  recognising 
as  sacred,  the  books  which  now  form  the  collection  of  the 
Scriptures  1 

For  the  Old  Testament,  we  have  the  testimony  of  the 
Jewish  Church  ;  and  for  the  New  Testament,  the  tes- 
timony of  the  Universal  Church. 

XXXII.  What  are  we  here  to  understand  by  the 
testimony  of  the  Jewish  Church  ? 

We  must  understand  the  consent  of  all  the  Jews, 
Egyptians  and  Syrians,  Asiatics  and  Europeans,  Sad- 
ducees  and  Pharisees,!  ancient  and  modern,  good 
and  bad. 

XXXIII.  What  reason  have  we  for  holding  as  di- 
vine, the  books  of  the  Old  Testament,  which  the  Jewish 
Church  has  given  us  as  such  ? 

It  is  written  that  "  the  oracles  of  God  were  committed 
to  them  :"J  which  signifies  that  God,  in  his  wisdom, 
chose  them  to  be,  under  the  almighty  control  of  his  pro- 
vidence, sure  depositories  of  his  written  word. 

XXXIV.  Should  our  faith  then  depend  on  the  Jews  ? 
The  Jews  have  often  fallen  into  idolatry  ;  they  have 

denied  the  faith  ;  they  have  killed  their  prophets  ;  they 
have  crucified  the  King  of  kings ;  they  have  hardened 
their  hearts  for  nearly  two  thousand  years ;  they  have 
filled  up  the  measure  of  their  sins,  and  "  wrath  is  come 
upon  them  to  the  uttermost."^     Yet,  "the  oracles  of 

•  2  Tim.  iii.  16. 

t  See  Josephus,  against  Appion,  book  1,  p.  1037. — Philo  in  Eichhorn. — 
Joseph  in  Nov.  Repert.,  p.  239. — De  JEgyptici.s  Judaeis.  cf.  Eichhorn  Ein- 
leit  ins.  A.  T.  P.  I.  §  xxi.  p.  73,  89,  91, 113,  114,  116.— De  Sadducaeis,  §  xxxv. 
p.  95.— Et  Semler(App.  ad  liberal,  v.  T.  interpret,  p.  11.— Eichhorn.,  Allg. 
Bibl.  der.  bibl.  Literal  T.  iv.  p.  275,276.) 

T  Romans  iii.  2.  §  1  Thess.  ii.  16. 


358S5  CATECHISM. 

God  were  committed  to  them  ;"  and,  although  these 
oracles  condemn  them  ;  although  a  veil  remains  upon 
their  hearts  when  they  read  the  Old  Testament  ;*  al- 
though they  have,  for  ages,  despised  the  word  of  God, 
and  adored  their  Talmud ;  they  have  not  been  able 
not  to  give  us  unharmed  and  complete  the  book  of  the 
Scriptures  ;  and  the  historian  Josephus  might  yet  say 
of  them,  that  which  he  wrote  of  them  eighteen  hundred 
years  ago  :  "  after  that  so  many  ages  have  already 
passed  away.t  no  one,  among  the  Jews,  has  dared  to 
ADD,  RETRENCH  or  TRANSPOSE  any  thing  in  the  Holy 
Scriptures."J  Have  we  not  here  cause  for  perpetual 
gratitude  and  admiration  1  Flow  great  is  the  interval 
of  time  which  has  elapsed  between  the  times  of  the  Jews 
and  of  Christians !  and  yet  both  they  and  we  possess 
the  same  sacred  books,  without  even  the  difference  of  a 
single  letter. 

XXXV.  What  have  then  been  the  securit}?-,  the  cause 
and  the  means  of  this  fidelity  of  the  Jews? 

We  shall  answer  to  this  question  very  briefly.  Its 
security  has  been  the  promise  of  God;  its  cause  has 
been  the  providence  of  God  ;  and  its  means  has  been 
the  concurrence  of  the  five  following  circumstances: 

1st.  The  religion  of  the  Jews,  which  has  carried  even 
to  superstition,  their  respect  for  the  letter  of  the  Scrip- 
tures ; 

2d.  The  indefatigable  labors  of  the  Masorites,  who 
have  watched  over  it  with  so  much  care,  even  in  its 
least  accents ; 

3d.  The  rivalship  of  the  Jewish  sects,  none  of  which 

*  2  Cor.  iii.  15.  t  ToaovT-)\>  yap  aH'Ovi's  TlSn  :rap'jJx^'<^T05. 

t  See  this  quotation  at  the  xxvii.  question. 


CATECHISM.  323 

would  ever  have  authorized  the  unfaithfulness  of  the 
others  ; 

4th.  The  extraordinary  dispersion  of  this  people  into 
all  the  countries  of  the  world,  long  before  the  destruc- 
tion of  Jerusalem  ;  for  "  Moses  of  old  time  hath  in  every 
city,  (pagan)  them  that  preach  him,  being  read  in  the 
synagogues  every  Sabbath  day;"* 

5ih.  Finally,  the  innumerable  multitudes  of  the  copies, 
of  the  sacred  book,  scattered  among  all  nations. 

XXXVI.  And  as  to  the  New  Testament,  what  must 
we  now  understand  by  the  testimony  of  the  Catholic 
Church  ? 

We  must  understand  by  it,  the  universal  consent  of 
the  ancient  and  modern  churches,  Asiatic  and  Euro- 
pean, good  and  bad,  which  call  on  the  name  of  Jesus 
Christ :  that  is  to  say,  not  only  the  faithful  sects  of  the 
blessed  Reformation,  but  the  Greek,  the  Armenian,  the 
Syi'iac,  the  Roman,  and  the  Unitarian  sects. j 

XXXVII.  Should  our  faith  then  be  founded  upon  the 
Catholic  church? 

All  the  churches  have  erred  or  have  been  liable  to 
error.  Many  have  denied  the  faith,  persecuted  Jesus 
Christ  in  his  members,  denied  his  divinit)^,  annihilated 
his  cross,  reestablished  the  worship  of  statues  and  of 
graven  images,  exalted  the  priests,  shed  the  blood  of  the 
saints,  prohibited  the  Scriptures  to  the  people,  destroyed 
by  fire  the  people  of  God  who  desired  to  read  them  in 
their  native  tongue,  established  in  the  temple  of  God 
him  who  sits  there  as   God,  overruled  the  Scriptures, 

'  Acts  XV.  21.    Josephus  often  attests  the  same  fact. 

t  We  believe  that  we  may  employ  the  name  Church  after  the  example 
of  the  Scriptures,  as  designating  sometimes  every  thing  gathered  in  the 
Gospel  nets,  sometimes  only  thut  which  is  pure  and  living.  And  as  to  the 
name  sect  (aipecrtg  Acts  xxiv.  14  ;  xxvi.  5  ;  xxviii.  22,)  after  the  example  of 
the  apostle,  we  employ  it  here  neither  in  a  good  nor  a  bad  sense. 


324  CATECHISM. 

worshipped  traditions,  made  war  on  God,  and  cast  the 
truth  to  the  ground.  Notwithstanding-  all  this,  the  new 
oracles  of  God  have  been  entrusted  to  them,  as  those  of 
the  Old  Testament  were  to  the  Jews.  And  although 
these  oracles  condemn  them,  although  they  have  for 
ages  despised  the  Scriptures,  and  almost  adored  their 
traditions,  they  have  not  been  able  not  to  give  us  un- 
harmed and  complete  the  book  of  the  Scriptures  of  the 
New  Testament ;  and  we  may  say  of  them,  that  which 
Josephus  has  said  of  the  Jews :  "  after  that  so  many 
ages  have  passed  away,  never  has  any  one  in  the 
churches  dared  to  add  any  thing  to  or  take  anything 
from  the  holy  Scriptures  ;  they  have  been  compelled, 
in  spite  of  themselves,  to  transmit  them  to  us  in  their  in- 
tegrity." What  new  cause  have  we  here  for  admira- 
tion and  gratitude  !  How  v/ide  has  been  the  division 
between  the  churches  of  the  East  and  that  of  Rome, 
between  the  adherents  of  the  Pope  and  the  Reformers ! 
And  yet  among  all,  Greeks,  Latins  and  Protestants, 
there  is  but  one  sacred  book  of  the  New  Testament, 
without  the  difference  of  a  single  iota. 

XXXVIII.  Yet,  has  there  not  been,  in  Christianity, 
a  powerful  sect,  which  for  three  hundred  years,  has  in- 
troduced into  the  canon  of  the  Scriptures,  apocryphal 
books,  disavowed  of  the  Jews,*  (as  even  the  pope  Saint 
Gregory  attests,)!  and  rejected  by  the  fathers  of  the  an- 
cient church.J  (as  attests  Saint  Jerome?)*^ 

•  Josephus  against  App.  liv.  i.  8.     Eusebius  E.  H.  book  iii.  ch.  9,  10. 

f  Exposition  of  Job— Hist,  of  Counc.  of  Trent  by  Fra  Paolo,  torn.  i.  liv. 
2,  Sect.  47. 

X  Oiigen  (Eusebius  E.  H.  liv.  iv.  c.  26.)  Athanasius  (Paschal  letter.) 
St.  Hilfiry  (prologue  in  Psalmos.  p.  9,  Paris,  1693.)  St.  Epiphan.,  Larduer, 
vol.  iv.,  p.  312.     St  Gregory  Naziaiizen  (Carm.  33,  Oj).  torn.  ii.  p.  98.) 

§  Preface  to  book  of  Kings  j  or  Prolog.  Galeato.  See  Lardner,  vol.  5, 
|>.  16-22. 


CATECHISM.  325 

That,  it  is  true,  was  done  for  the  Latin  sect,  by  the 
nfiy-three  persons  who  composed  on  the  8th  April,  1546, 
he  famous  council  of  Trent,  and  who  pretended  to  rep- 
\sent  THE  UNIVERSAL  Church  OF  Jesus  Christ.*  But 
they  have  done  it  only  for  the  Old  Testament,  which 
was  entrusted  to  the  Jews,  and  not  to  the  Christians. 
Neither  this  council,  nor  any  of  the  churches,  even  the 
most  corrupted  and  the  most  idolatrous,  have  ever  been 
able  to  add  one  single  apochryphai  book  to  the  New 
Testament.  God  has  not  permitted  this,  in  spite  of  all 
their  evil  and  impious  purposes.  Thus  it  is  that  the 
Jews  have  been  able  to  reject  the  New  Testament, 
which  is  not  committed  to  them ;  whilst  they  have 
NRVER  BEEN  ABLE  to  introduce  a  single  human  book  into 
the  Old  Testament,  and  have  ever  excluded  from  it  those 
which  the  fifty-three  ecclesiastics  of  Trent  have  pre- 
tended to  add  to  it  in  the  name  of  the  Universal  church. 

XXXIX.  And  what  has  been  the  security,  the  cause 
and  the  means  of  this  fidelity  of  the  Universal  church  in 
transmitting  to  us  the  oracles  of  God  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment? 

We  shall  answer  this  question  briefly. 

Its  guarantee  has  been  the  promise  of  God  ;  its  cause 
has  been  the  Providence  of  God,  and  its  means  has  been 
especially  the  concurrence  of  the  following  circum- 
stances : 

1.  The  religion  of  the  ancient  christians,  and  their  ex- 
extraordinary  respect  for  the  sacred  text ;  a  respect  which 
showed  itself  on  every  occasion,  in  their  churches,!  in 


'  Forty-eight  bishops  and  five  cardinals,  all  or  almost  all  Italians.  Fra 
Paolo,  t.  i.  liv.  2,  §57. 

t  Photius  contr.  Manich.,  i.  t.  1 ;  apud  Wolf,  anecd.,  p.  32,  sq.— J.  Ciam- 
pini  rom.  vetera  monum,,  i.  p.  126,  sq. 

28 


326  CATECHISM, 

their  councils,*  in  their  oaths, f  and  even  in  their  do- 
mestic customs  ;J 

2.  The  labors  of  learned  men,  in  different  ages,  for 
the  preservation  of  the  sacred  text ; 

3.  The  abundant  quotations  of  the  Scriptures  made 
by  the  fathers  of  the  church  ; 

4.  The  mutual  jealousy  of  the  sects  into  which  the 
Christian  church  has  been  subdivided  ; 

5.  The  versions  made  from  the  earliest  ages  in  many 
ancient  languages  ; 

6.  The  number  and  the  abundant  dissemination  of 
the  manuscripts  of  the  New  Testament; 

7.  The  dispersion  of  the  new  people  of  God,  to  the 
very  extremities  of  Asia,  and  to  the  farthest  limits  of  the 
west. 

XL.  Docs  it  then  result  from  these  facts,  that  the 
authority  of  the  Scriptures  for  us.  is,  as  Bellarmin^  has 
declared,  founded  upon  that  of  the  church  ? 

The  doctors  of  Rome,  it  is  true,  have  gone  so  far  as 
to  say  that,  without  the  testimony  of  the  Church,  the 
Scriptures  would  have  no  more  authority  than  Titus 
Liv}^,  than  the  Koran,  or  than  the  fables  of  Esop  ;||  and 
Bellarmin,  having  doubtless  a  horror  of  these  impious 
sentences,  has  wished  to  distinguish  the  authority  of  the 
Scriptures  in  itxeJf  and  in  reference  to  us  (quoad  se  et 
quoad  nos.)     In  this  last  sense,  he  says,  the  Scriptures 

*  Cyrill.,  Alex,  in  Apol.  atlTheodo.-;.,  imp.  Act.  Concii.  e<].  Mansi.  t.  vi. 
col.  579;  vii.  col.  6;  i.\.  col.  187  ;  xil.  col.  1009,  10r;2,  al. 

t  Corb.  byz.,  i.  p.  422,  al. 

t  See  St.  Jerome,  pref.  on  Job.  St.  Chi  ysost.  Horn.  19,  l)e  Slaiuis.  The 
women,  says  he,  were  accustomed  to  suspend  copies  of  the  gospels  oa 
)he  necks  of  their  children.   See  the  (iSth  canon  of  the  vi.  Counc.  in  Trullo. 

§  Lib.  ii.  de  Conciliis,  c.  12. 

il  Hosius  contrii  Breiitium.  lib.  iii.  Eckius,  de  auth.  Ecc^esioe.  Bayle 
Tractat.  i.  catech.  9,  12.  Andradius,  lib.  iii.  Defens.  Cone.  Trident.  Staple- 
ton  adv.  Whilaker,  lib.  i.  c.  17. 


CATECHISM.  327 

have  no  authority  but  by  the  testimony  of  the  Church. 
Our  answer  shall  be  very  simple. 

Every  manifestation  having'  three  causes,  an  objec- 
tive, a  subjective,  and  an  instrumental  cause ;  we  may 
say  also,  that  the  knowledge  which  we  receive  of  the 
authority  of  the  Scriptures  has  first,  for  its  objective 
causc^  the  Holy  Bible  itself,  which  proves  its  divinity 
by  its  own  beauty  and  by  its  own  works  ;  in  the  second 
place,  for  its  subjective  or  efficient  cavse,  the  Holy 
Spirit,*  which  confirms  and  seals  to  our  souls  the  testi- 
mony of  God;  and  thirdly,  in  fine,  for  its  instrumental 
cause,  the  Church,  not  the  Roman,  nor  the  Greek,  more 
ancient  than  the  Roman,  nor  even  the  Syrian,  more  an- 
cient than  both,  but  the  universal  Church. 

The  pious  Saint  Augustine  expresses  this  threefold 
cause  in  his  book  against  the  epistle  of  Manicheul^  called 
fandameiiti.  Speaking  of  the  time  when  he  was  yet 
a  Manichean,  he  says.J  "  I  should  not  have  believed 
the  Gospel,  if  I  had  not  been  led  to  it  by  the  authority 
of  the  Church  ;"  but  he  is  careful  to  add:  "  Let  us  fol- 
low those  who  invite  us  to  believe,  at  once,  while  we 
may  not  yet  be  in  a  condition  to  see  ;  so  that  being  ren- 
dered more  capable  by  the  very  exercise  of  faith,  w^e 
may  deserve  to  comprehend  wjiat  we  now  simply  be- 
lieve. Then  it  will  no  longer  be  man,  it  vvill  be  God 
himself  vv'ithin  us,  v/ho  will  strengthen  and  illuminate 
our  soul." 

•  Is;{.  liv.  13,  lix.  21. 

X  Evangelic  iion  crederem  (according  to  the  African  custom,  for  credi- 
dissem,  as  confess,  lib.  ii.  c.  8:  Si  tunc  aniarem,(for  aniavissem)  nisi  nie 
f:cclesiae  coramoveret  (conimovisf^et)  authoritas  (ch.  5.)  Eos  sequamur 
.jui  nos  iinitatitprius  credere,  quum  nondum  valemus  intueri,  ut  ipsA  fide 
valentiores  facti,  quod  credimus  ititelligereinereamur,  non  jam  hominibus, 
Fed  ipso  Den  iiitiinserus  mentem  nostram  firmante  et  illuminante  (c.  14.) 
Opera  August.,  Parid,  Mabillon,  t.  viii. 


328  CATECHISM. 

Here  then  the  church  is  a  servant,  not  a  mistress  ;  a 
depositary,  not  a  judge.  She  exercises  an  office,  not  an 
authority  ;  minisle.rium,  non  magisterium*  She  gives 
her  testimony,  not  her  sentence.  She  discerns  the  canon 
of  the  Scriptures,  she  has  not  made  it.  She  has  recog- 
nised their  authenticity,  she  has  not  constituted  it.  And 
as  the  men  of  Shechem  believed  in  Jesus  Christ,  not 
from  the  report  of  the  sinful,  but  penitent  woman,  who 
called  them  to  him  ;  so  we  say  to  the  Church ;  now,  we 
believe  not  because  of  thy  saying  ;  we  have  heard  him 
ourselves,  and  know  that  this  is  indeed  the  Christ,  the 
Savior  of  the  world.  We  have  believed  then  per  eam^ 
and  not  joropler  earn  ;  by  means  of  her,  and  not  because 
of  her.  We  found  her  on  her  knees  ;  she  showed  us 
her  master  ;  we  have  recognised  him,  and  we  have  our- 
selves knelt  with  her.  If  I  mingle  in  the  last  ranks  of 
an  imperial  army,  and  request  them  to  point  out  to  me 
their  prince,  and  conduct  me  to  him,  they  will  do  in  re- 
spect to  him,  for  me,  Avhat  the  Church  does  for  the 
Scriptures.  They  will  not  call  their  regiment  the  ecu- 
menical army;  and  above  all,  they  will  not  say  that 
their  emperor  has  authority  by  their  testimony  alone, 
whether  as  it  regards  themselves  or  us ;  whether  it  be 
quoad  se  or  quoad  nns  (as  says  Bellarmin.)  The 
authority  of  the  Scriptures  is  in  no  way  founded  on  the 
authority  of  the  Church  ;  it  is  the  Church  which  is 
founded  on  the  authority'-  of  the  Scriptures. 

XLT.  If  the  authenticity  of  the  Scriptures  is  proved 
in  a  great  measure  by  history,  how  is  their  Theopneusty 
then  established? 

By  the  Scriptures  alone. 

XLII.  But  is  such  an  argument  rational?     Is  it  not 

'  Turretin.  Theol.  elenct.  vol.  1.  loc.  2.  ques.  6. 


CATECHISM.  329 

begging  the  question,  and  is  it  not  proving  inspiration 
by  inspiration  ? 

There  would  be  a  begging  of  the  question,  if,  to  prove 
that  the  Scriptures  are  inspired,  we  should  inyoke  their 
own  testinaony,  as  if  they  were  inspired.  But  we  must 
beware  of  proceeding  thus.  We  consider  the  Bible, 
first,  simply  as  a  historical  document,  worthy  of  our  re- 
spect by  its  authenticity,  and  by  means  of  which  we 
may  know  the  doctrine  of  Jesus  Christ,  as  one  would 
learn  that  of  Socrates  by  the  books  of  Plato,  or  that  of 
Leibnitz,  by  the  writings  of  Wolff  Now,  this  docu- 
ment declares  to  us  in  every  page,  that  the  whole  sys- 
tem of  the  religion  which  it  teaches,  is  founded  on  the 
great  fact  of  a  miraculous  intervention  of  God  in  the 
revelation  of  its  history,  and  of  its  doctrines. 

The  learned  Michaelis  himself,  whose  views  of  in- 
spiration are  so  lax,  declares  that  the  authenticity  of  the 
apostolic  writings  necessarily  results  from  their  inspi- 
ration. 

There  is  no  middle  ground,  says  he  ;  if  their  narra- 
tive is  true,  they  are  inspired  ;  if  they  were  not  inspired 
they  could  not  be  sincere  :  but  they  are  sincere :  there- 
fore they  are  inspired.  There  is  then,  nothing  in  such 
a  train  of  reasoning  that  can  wear  the  appearance  of 
'  begging  the  question.' 

XLllI.  If  it  is  by  the  Bible  itself  that  the  doctrine 
of  a  certain  inspiration  in  the  sacred  books  is  established,^ 
how  can  it  be  proved  that  this  inspiration  is  universal, 
and  that  it  has  extended  even  to  the  minutest  details  of 
their  instructions  ? 

If  it  is  the  Scriptures  that  teach  us  their  own  Theop- 
neusty,  it  is  they  alone  also  that  can  teach  us  in  what 
this  Theopneusty  consisted.  To  admit  their  inspiration 
29* 


330  CATECHISM. 

on  their  own  testimony  alone,  we  must  be  well  assured 
that  they  are  authentic  ;  but  to  admit  their  full  inspira- 
tion, something-  more  is  needful ;  for  we  can  invoke 
their  testimony  as  a  witness  already  recognised  as  di- 
vine ;  they  are  no  more  merely  authentic  books,  which 
shall  say  to  us  :  I  am  inspired  ;  they  are  authentic  and 
inspired  books,  which  shall  say  to  us  :  I  am  altogether 
inspired.  The  Scriptures  are  inspired,  we  affirm,  be- 
cause, being  authentic  and  true,  they  declare  themselves 
inspired  ;  but  the  Scriptures  are  also  'plenarUy  inspired^ 
we  add,  because,  being  inspired,  they  say  that  they  are 
60  totally  and  without  any  exception. 

It  is  then  simply  a  doctrine  that  the  Bible  here  teaches 
us,  just  as  it  teaches  us  all  other  doctrines.  And  just 
as  we  believe  that  Jesus  Christ  is  God,  and  that  he  be- 
came man,  because  the  Bible  tells  us  so  ;  thus  also  we 
believe  that  the  Holy  Spirit  is  God,  and  that  he  has  dic- 
tated all  the  Scriptures. 

XLIY.  Who  are  the  writers  who  have  opposed  the 
doctrine  of  inspiration  ? 

Before  enumerating  them  here,  we  ought  to  make  a 
general  observation  ;  it  is  that,  with  the  alone  exception 
of  Theodore  of  Mopsuesta,  that  philosophical  theolo- 
gian, whose  numerous  writings,  so  deeply  stained  with 
Pelagianism,  were  condemned  for  their  Nestorianism, 
in  the  fifth  universal  Council,  (Constantinople,  553,) 
and  whose  principles  on  the  subject  of  Theopneusty 
were  very  loose  ;  with  the  exception,  we  say,  of  Theo- 
dore of  Mopsuesta,  there  cannot  be  cited,  in  the  long 
course  of  the  first  eight  centuries  of  Christianity, 
one  single  writer,  who  was  ignorant  of  the  plenary  in- 
spiration of  the  Scriptures  ;  if  he  is  not  in  the  bosom  of 
the  most  violent  heresies  which  have  tormented  the 


CATECHISM.  331 

Chiistian  Church  ;  I  mean,  among-  the  Gnostics,  the 
Manicheans,  the  Anomians,  and  the  Mohammedans. 
St.  Jerome  hhnseir,  who  has  sometimes  indulged  him- 
self, when  speaking  of  the  style  of  certain  parts  of  the 
j;aered  books,  in  a  language,  the  temerity  of  which  must 
be  reproved  by  all  pious  men,*  yet  maintains,  even  for 
such  passages,  the  entire  inspiration  of  all  the  parts  of 
the  Holy  Scriptures  :t  and  he  sees  even  there,  under 
what  he  ventures  to  call  the  grossness  of  the  language, 
and  the  apparent  folly  of  the  reasonings,  intentions  of 
the  Holy  Spirit,  full  of  skill  and  of  depth.  And  if, 
transporting  ourselves  from  the  days  of  St.  Jerome  to 
four  hundred  years  later,  we  come  to  the  celebrated 
Agobard,  whom  Dr.  Du  Pin  pretends  to  make  the  first 
of  the  Fathers  of  the  Church  that  have  abandoned  the 
doctrine  of  a  verbal  inspiration  t  it  is  quite  unjustly,  says 
Dr.  Ruddelbach,  that  such  an  accusation  is  brought 
against  that  bishop.  It  is  true  that,  in  disputing  against 
the  Abbey  Fredegise.i^  concerning  the  latitude  permitted 
to  the  Latin  translators,  in  regard  to  the  words  of  the 
sacred  text,  he  maintained  that  the  dignity  of  the  word 
of  God  consists  in  the  power  of  the  meaning,  and  not 
in  the  pomp  of  the  words  ;  but  he  took  care  to  add,  thai 
"the  authorit)'  of  the  Apostles  and  Prophets  remains 
unimpaired,  and  that  it  is  not  permitted  to  any  one  to  be- 
lieve that  they  could  have-  placed  a  letter  otherwise  than 
they  have  done  ;  because  their  authority  is  stronger  than 
heaven  and  earth."  j] 

'  Q,ui  solcecismos  in  verbi.^  facit,  qui  non  potest  hj'perbaton  reddere  sen- 
tentiamque  coiirliidere.  Wlio  (St.  Paul)  is  guilty  of  soleci.sms,  and  cannot 
complete  a  sentence  or  finish  a  hyperbaton. — (Comment  on  Titus,  lib.  1.  ad 
cap.  i.  1.)— and  on  Epli.  lib.  ii.  (ad  rap.  iii.  1.)  See  also  his  Comment,  on 
Galatians.  t  Proem,  on  Philemon  ;  Comment,  on  Galat.  iib.  ii. 

J  Du  Pin  of  the  Sorbonne,  Proles,  on  Bible,  lib.  1.  v.  256. 

§  Agobard,  adv.  Fredeg.,  lib.  c.  9—12. 

{  Rudelbach,  Zeitschrift,  1st  number,  ISIO,  p.  48. 


332  CATECHISM. 

If  then  we  would  arrange,  in  the  order  of  time,  the 
men  who  have  set  themselves  against  the  entire  the- 
opneusty  of  our  sacred  books,  we  must  place  : 

In  the  second  century;  the  Gnostics,  (Valentinius, 
Cordon,  Marcion  his  pupil,  &.C..)  they  believed  in  two 
equal,  independent  principles,  contrary  and  co-eternal, 
the  one  good  and  the  other  bad  ;  the  one.  Father  of 
Jesus  Christ ;  the  other,  author  of  the  law ;  and  main- 
taining this  theory,  they  rejected  the  Pentateuch,  while 
admitting,  in  the  New  Testament,  the  Gospel  of  Luke 
and  one  portion  of  the  epistles  of  Paul. 

In  the  third  century  ;  Maneus  or  Manicheus,  who 
styling  himself  the  paraclete,  promised  by  Jesus  Christ, 
corrected  the  books  of  the  Christians,  and  added  to  them 
his  own  ; 

In  the  fourth  century  ;  the  Anomians  or  ultra-arians 
(for  Arius  himself  spoke  more  reservedly.)  who  main- 
tained, with  Aetius,  their  head,  that  the  Son,  a  created 
intelligence,  unlike  the  Father*  inhabited  a  human  body 
without  a  human  soul.  They  spoke  of  the  Scriptures 
with  a  degree  of  irreverence  equivalent  to  the  denial  of 
their  entire  inspiration.  "  When  they  are  pushed  by 
Scripture  reasons,  says  St.  Epiphanus,  they  escape  by 
this  language :"  "  It  is  as  man  that  the  Apostle  has  said 
these  things  or  those" — "  why  do  you  oppose  to  me  the 
Old  Testament  ?"  What  adds  the  holy  bishop  ?  "  It  was 
a  necessary  consequence,"  says  he,  "  that  those  who  deny 
the  glory  of  Christ, deny  still  more  that  of  the  Apostles;"! 

In  the  fifth  century;  Theodore  of  Mopsuesta,  head 
of  the  school  of  Antioch,  an  able  philosopher  and  a 
learned  theologian,  but  rash.     Of  his  numerous  works, 

Avofioic.;  tlienre  their  names, 
t  Epiphun.,  adveis.  hiEr.  Ixx.  vi. — Aetii  salutat.  confuf.,  vi. 


CATECHISM.  333 

there  remain  to  us  only  fragments  preserved  by  differ- 
ent authors.  His  books,  we  have  said,  were  condemned 
(two  hundred  years  after  his  death,)  at  the  council  of 
Constantinople.  They  cited,  there,  for  example,  his 
writings  ag-ainst  Appolonarius,  when  he  said,  that  the 
Book  of  Job  is  but  a  poem  proceeding-  from  a  pagan 
heart : — that  Solomon  had  without  doubt  received  loyov 
yv(b(TSMz  but  not  loyov  uoqUtg  ; — knowledge  but  not  wis- 
dom ;  that  the  Canticles  are  but  a  long  and  insignificant 
epithalamium,  without  prophetic,  historical,  or  scientific 
character,  and  in  the  style  of  the  Sympasion  of  Plato, 
etc.  etc.* 

In  the  seventh  century  ;  Mohammed  (whose  false  re- 
ligion is  rather  a  heresy  of  Christianity,  and  who  speaks 
of  Christ  at  least  as  honourably  as  do  the  greater  part 
of  the  Socinians,)  Mohammed  recognised  and  quoted 
often  as  inspired,  the  books  of  the  Old  and  New  Testa- 
ment, but  he  pronounced  them  corrupt,  and,  like  Maneus, 
he  added  his  own. 

In  the  twelfth  and  thirteenth  centuries  ;  as  it  appears, 
there  arose  and  was  formally  stated  first  among  the 
Jewish  talmudists,  the  theory  of  modern  divines,  who 
have  chosen  to  classify  different  passages  of  the  Holy 
Scriptures  under  different  degrees  of  inspiration,  and  to 
reduce  thpopneusty  to  proportions  more  or  less  natural. 
It  was  under  the  double  influence  of  the  Aristotelian 
philosophy  and  of  the  theology  of  the  Talmud,  that  the 
Jews  of  the  middle  ages,  in  this  respect  very  different 
from  the  ancient  Jews.f  imagined  this  theory.  It  was 
in  the  time  of  Solomon  Jarchi,  David  Kimchi,  of  the 

•Acta  cmicilii  Constantinop.  ii.  collat.  iv.  65,71,  apud  Harduin.  Acta 
«oncilii,  torn,  iii,  p.  87—89. 

t  See  Josephus  against  Appion,  lib.  i.  c.  7,  8  ,  and  Philo,  ed.  Hseschel,  p. 
515  et  p.  918. 


334  CATECHISM. 

Averroes,  of  Aben-Ezra,  Joseph  Albo,  and  above  all, 
o{  Moses  MaimonideSj  that  Spanish  Jew  who  was  called 
the  eagle  among  the  learned.  Maimonides  borrowing 
the  vague  terms  of  peripateticism,  taught  that  prophecy- 
is  not  the  exclusive  product  of  the  action  of  the  Holy- 
Spirit  ;  but  that  in  the  same  manner  when  the  intcUec- 
tus  agerts  (the  intellectual  influence  in  man)  associates 
itself  more  intimately  with  the  reason,  it  gives  birth  to 
the  secta  sapienlum  speculaiorum  ;  the  class  of  wise 
speculators  ;  and  that  when  this  agent  operates  on  the 
imagination,  there  arises  from  it  the  sectn  folilicorum^ 
legislalorum,  divinalorum,  and  pr<xstigiatorum  ;  the 
class  of  politicians,  legislators,  divines  and  fortune-tel- 
lers ;  so  likewise  when  this  supeiior  principle  exerts 
its  influence  in  a  more  perfect  manner,  and  at  once  on 
these  two  faculties  of  the  soul,  it  produces  the  secla  pro- 
phetarum  ;  the  class  of  prophets.  Almost  all  the  mo- 
dern learned  Jews  have  adopted  the  ideas  of  Maimoni- 
des; and  this  appears  likewise  to  have  been  the  modern 
theory  of  M.  Schleiermacher  on  inspiration.  It  is  by 
starting  from  these  principles  that  the  learned  have  ad- 
mitted several  degrees  of  inspiration  in  the  prophets. 
Maimonides  sometimes  numbered  eight,  sometimes 
eleven.  Joseph  Albo  reduced  them  to  four,  and  Abar- 
banel  to  three.  They  applied  these  distinctions  of  the 
different  degrees  of  inspiration  to  the  division  of  the  Old 
Testament  into  Law,  Prophets  and  Hagiographies 
(Q^!2Til5  D''i^'^^D  n"lTin  )  The  Kelhubim,  according 
to  him,  had  not  received  the  Spirit  of  prophecy  (nJ^^TlHi 
np)  but  only  the  Holy  Spirit,  (tinpH  PinO  which  in 
his  estimation  was  but  a  faculty  of  man,  by  which  he 
uttered  words  of  wisdom  and  holiness.* 

*  Moses  Maiirionides,  more  nebuchim,  part  ii.  ch.  37  and  45.    Rudelbach 
^ut  supra.)  p.  53. 


CATECHISM.  335 

The  modern  German  School  of  the  adversaries  of 
inspiration  appears  then  to  be  but  a  reproduction  of  the 
theory  of  the  rabbins  of  the  thirteenth  century,  or  is 
merely  borrowed  from  the  Tahimdist  doctors  of  our 
day. 

In  the  sixteenth  century,  Socinus,*  and  Castelliof 
maintained  that  the  sacred  writers  failed  sometimes  in 
memory,  and  were  liable  to  error  on  subjects  of  small 
impoitance. 

In  the  seventeenth  century,  three  ranks  of  ad  versa- 
ries  according  to  the  celebrated  Turretin  J  fought 
against  inspiration.  There  were  beside  the  unbelievers 
properly  called  [athens  et  gentiles ;)  1.  the  fanatics 
(enlhuslasia.)  who  accused  the  Scriptures  of  imperfec- 
tion, to  exalt  their  own  revelation  ;  2.  the  followers  of 
the  Pope,  [pnn(ific.n)  who  feared  not.  said  he,  to  betray 
the  ciuse  of  Christi.mity,  by  alleging  the  corruption  of 
the  original  text,  [fontntm.)  in  order  to  raise  their  Vul- 
gate translation  ;  3.  rationalists  of  different  classes, 
{lihei'litii)  who  while  remaining  in  the  church,  ceased 
not  to  shake  th*^  authority  of  the  Scriptures,  by  object- 
ing to  difficult  passages  and  apparent  contradictions, 

In  the  last  half  of  the  eighteenth  century,  this  third 
class  of  opponents  increased  greatly  in  Germany.  Sem- 
ler  gave  the  iir.<it  impulse  to  what  he  termed  the  liberal 
interpretation  of  the  Scriptures  ;  he  put  aside  all  inspi- 
ration, denied  all  prophecy,  and  regarded  ever}^  mira- 
cle as  allegory  or  pxaogeration  §  At  a  later  period, 
Ammon  established  positive  rules  for  this  impious  man- 

*  Dp  Author,  Script.  t  Iii  Dialogis. 

t  Then],  eleiictic.  Idc  2,  qnaesf.  5. 

§  Prefurp  (if  ihe  Compendium  de  SchuUens,  en  the  Proverbs,  by  Vogel. 
Halle,  1769,  p.  5. 


336  CATECHISM. 

ner  of  explaining  miraculous  facts.*  A  legion  of  wri- 
ters equally  rash,  Paulus,  Gabler.  Schuster,  Restig^and 
many  others  have  made  an  abundant  practical  applica- 
tien  of  these  principles  in  their  writings.  Eichhoin, 
more  recently,  has  reduced  the  rationalist  doctrine  of 
prophecy  to  a  system. f  De  Wette.  in  his  'prelivdnary 
manual  appears  to  have  seen  no  real  prediction  in  the 
prophets,  and  to  discover  no  other  difference  between 
those  of  Israel  and  those  of  the  pagan  nations,  than  the 
spirit  of  morality  and  sincerity  which  characterisrs  the 
monotheism,  and  which  purified  (he  says)  the  Hebrew 
prophecies,  while  it  was  wanting  in  the  seers  among 
the  Pagans. J  Hug,  in  his  introduction  to  the  wri- 
tings of  the  New  Testament.^  says  nothing  about  in- 
spiration. Michaelis  admits  it  for  one  part  of  the 
Scriptures,  and  rejects  it  for  the  other.  So  did  Le 
Clerc,  in  the  last  century.  I|  Rosenmuller  is  still  more 
unequal. 

In  these  latter  years,  however,  among  the  Germans, 
the  more  respectful  theologians  have  admitted  different 
degrees  of  inspiration  in  the  different  parts  of  the  Scrip- 
tures, distinguishing  at  the  same  time,  the  passages 
which,  they  say,  do  not  relate  to  salvation  ;  and  pre- 
tending to  see  in  them,  as  formerly  did  Socinus  and 
Castellio,  faults  of  memory,  and  errors,  on  subjects,  say 
they,  of  trivial  importance. 

Among  the  English,  we  have  also  recently  seen  men, 
otherwise  respectable,  permit  themselves  to  rank  under 

*De  interpret,  iiarrationum  mirab,  N.  T.  (preface  to  his  Ernesti.) 

t  Eii.'eilung  in  das  .Mie  Testament ;  4ilie(lit.  Ga*liiig.  1824.  torn.  iv.  p.  45. 

I  Zweyie  verbessete  Auflage.     Berlin,  1822,  p.  279,  Lelnbuch.  Animer- 
kunjren.  §  Linleilnng,  eic.,  2il  edit.  18-'l. 

II  t?eiitinients  of  some  Dutch  Tlieolugian.s,  Letter  xi,  xii.  La  Chambr. 
Truite  de  la  rweligion,  torn.  iv.  jt.  159  and  following. 


CATECHISM.  337 

different  classes  of  inspiration,  the  different  sentences  of 
the  word  of  God. 

XLV.  Can  we  cite  many  illustrious  ^vriters  in  the 
church,  who  have  maintained  the  plenary  inspiration 
of  the  Scriptures  ? 

it  is  the  uniform  doctrine  of  the  entire  chukch  up  to 
the  days  of  the  reformation.  "  Scarcely,"  says  Rudel- 
bach,  "  is  there  a  single  point  in  respect  to  which  there 
has  prevailed,  in  the  first  eight  centuries  of  the  Church, 
a  greater  and  more  cordial  unanimity."* 

We  recommend  to  the  reader  desirous  of  seeing  these 
historical  testimonies,  the  dissertation  recently  published, 
upon  this  subject  by  the  learned  writer  of  Glauchau 
that  we  have  just  named.  The  author,  first  passing  in 
review  the  first  eight  hundred  years  of  the  Christian 
era,  establishes,  by  very  num.erous  citations  from  the 
Greek  and  Latin  fathers,  the  following  principles  : 

1.  The  ancient  Church  teaches  with  a  unanimous 
voice,  that  all  the  canonical  writings  of  the  Old  and  the 
New  Testament  are  given  by  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God  ; 
and  that  it  is  upon  this  foundation  alone,  and  independ- 
ently of  the  fragmentary  understanding  of  them  which 
human  imperfection  can  acquire,  that  the  Church  founded 
her  faith  in  the  perfection  of  the  Scriptures. 

2.  The  ancient  Church,  in  consequence  of  this  first 
principle,  maintains  as  firmly  the  infallibility  of  the 
Scriptures,  as  their  sufficiency  {avnxQy.nav)  and  as  their 
■plenitude.  She  does  not  only  attribute  to  their  sacred 
authors  the  axiojpisty.,  a  credibility  fully  merited,  but  also 

•  Kauniistirgenil  ein  Punct,  woriiber  in  Alterthiime  einegroessern  und 
freiidieere  Einstirnmigkeit  herrsclite.  (Zeitschrift  von  Rndell.ach  und 
Guerike.  1S40.  1st,  vol.  p.  1  to  47 :  Die  Lelire  von  der  Inspirntion  der  heili- 
gen  Schriff,  mit  Beriicksichtigung  der  neiisten  Untersuchungen  dariiber, 
von  Sclileiermaclier,  Twetsen  und  Steudel.) 

29 


338  CATECHISM. 

the  aulopisly.  that  is  to  say,  a  right  to  be  believed  inde- 
pendently of  their  circumstances,  or  of  their  personal 
qualities,  and  on  account  of  the  infallibility  and  heavenly 
authority  which  has  caused  them  to  speak. 

3.  The  ancient  Church  considering  all  Scripture  as 
the  word  of  God  addressed  to  man  and  dictated  by  the 
Holy  Spirit,  has  always  maintained,  that  in  it  is  found 
JNOTHiNG  ERRO]NEOus,  nothing  usclcss,  nothing  superflu- 
ous ;  and  that  in  this  divine  work  as  in  that  of  creation, 
we  may  always  recognise  in  the  midst  of  the  richest 
abundance,  the  greatest  and  wisest  economy.  Each 
word  then  has  its  end,  its  design,  its  sphere  of  action,* 
It  is  in  establishing  and  defending  with  power,  both 
these  features  of  the  Scriptures,  that  the  ancient  Church 
has  made  known  the  high  and  the  deep  idea  that  she 
had  of  their  theopneusty. 

4.  The  ancient  Church  has  always  maintained  that 
the  doctrine  of  the  Holy  Scripture  is  every  where  the 
SAME,  and  that  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  proclaims  one  and 
the  same  testimony  throughout.  She  has  powerfully 
opposed  this  science  falsely  so  called,  (1  Tim.  vi.  20.) 
which  already  in  the  first  ages,  presented  itself  in  tht. 
doctrine  of  the  Gnostics,  and  which,  pretending  to  attrib- 
ute imperfection  to  the  Old  Testament,  imagined  contra- 
dictions between  one  apostle  and  another. 

5.  The  ancient  Church  believed  that  inspiration 
should,  above  all,  be  considered  a  passive  state ;  and 
still,  as  a  state  in  which  the  human  faculties,  far  from 
BEING  stifled  or  laid  aside  by  the  action  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  were  raised  by  its  power,  and  filled  with  its  light. 

■*  Nihil  ofiosum,  nee  sine  signo,  neqiie  sine  argumento,  apud  eum.—Ire- 
no-AiS ;  iriiv  prifxa  .  .  .  ipYaZ,6:icDov  ro  havT.:v  ipyov. —  On'^en.— Nothing  of 
his  is  useless  or  insignificant  or  illogical. — Irenaeu's  ;  Every  word  .  .  ,  ac« 
complishing  its  own  work.— Origan. 


CATECPIISM.  339 

She  has  often  compared  the  souls  of  the  apostles  and 
prophets  "  to  a  stringed  instrument,  that  the  Holy  Spirit 
should  touch,  and  draw  thence  the  divine  harmony  of 
life."  (Athenagoras.)*  '•  Their  task  was  simply  to  pre- 
sent themselves  to  the  powerful  action  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  so  that  his  divine  plectrum  descending  from  hea- 
ven upon  the  human  viol,  caused  it  to  reveal  to  us  the 
knowledge  of  the  mysteries  of  heaven"  (Justin  Martyr.)! 
But  in  their  sight,  this  viol,  passive  as  it  was  in  respect 
to  the  action  of  God,  was  still  a  heart  of  man,  a  soul  of 
man,  an  intellect  of  man,  renewed  by  the  Holy  Spirit, 
and  filled  with  divine  life. 

6.  The  ancient  Church,  while  maintaining  this  con- 
tinuous action  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  in  the  composition  of 
the  Scriptures,  powerfully  repulsed  the  false  notions  that 
certain  among  the  learned,  chiefly  among  the  Montan- 
ists,  sought  to  propagate,  concerning  the  active  influ- 
ence of  the  Spirit  of  God  and  the  passive  state  of  the 
spirit  of  man  in  the  theopneusty  ;  as  if  the  prophet  ceas- 
ing to  be  master  of  his  senses,  Irad  been  in  the  condition 
which  the  pagans  attribute  to  their  sybils :  mania  or 
ecslacy,  (//«» /«  or  exoiaaat.)  While  the  Cataphrygians 
maintained  that  an  inspired  man  loses  his  senses  under 
the  overwhelming  influence  of  divine  powers  :t  the  an- 
cient Church  believed,  on  the  contrary,  that  the  prophet 
does  not  speak  in  a  state  of  ecstacy  ;^  and  that  by  this 
test  we  may  distinguish  true  from  false  prophets.  This 
was  the  doctrine  of  Origen  against  Celsus  (lib.  vii.  c.  4  ;) 
also  of  Miltiades,  TertuUian,  Epiphanus,  Chrysostom, 
Basil  and  Jerome  against  the  Montanists  || 

'  Legatio  pro  Ohristianis,  c.  9.  i  Ad  Graecos  coliortfitio,  c.  8, 

t  Tertulliaii,  adv.  Marcion,  lib.  iv.  ch.  22.     Excidit  seni^u,   obunibratus 

scilicet  virliite  divina.  §  Nou  loquitur  in  eKcrami. 

I  Hieronyni.  Proem,  in  Nahum.  Praefat.  in  Habacuc,  in  Esaiam.   Epiphan, 

adv.  liajrejfes,  lib.  2.    Haeres,  4S,  c.  3. 


340  CATECHISM. 

7.  The  ancient  Church,  seeking,  by  othep.  defini- 
tions which  we  shall  not  point  out  here,  to  render  the 
idea  of  theopneustj''  clearer,  and  relieve  it  of  the  difficul- 
ties by  which  it  was  sometimes  obscured,  showed  again 
by  this  means  how  dear  this  doctrine  was  to  her. 

8.  The  ancient  Church  believed  that,  in  order  to 
merit  the  name  of  the  action  of  God,  inspiration  ought 
to  extend  to  the  words,  as  well  as  the  things. 

9.  The  ancient  Church, — by  its  constant  mode  of 
QUOTING  the  Scriptures,  to  establish  and  defend  its  doc- 
trines ; — by  its  manner  also  of  expounding  them  and  ot 
COMMENTING  on  them  : — and  finally,  by  the  use  of  them 
which  she  recommends  to  all  Christians  without  excep- 
tion, as  a  privilege  and  a  duty;  the  ancient  Church  by 
these  three  habits  of  her  life,  shows  (still  more  strongly, 
if  possible,  than  by  direct  declarations.)  how  profoundly 
she  Avas  attached  to  a  verbal  inspiration. 

And  it  is  not  only  by  her  exposition  of  the  w^ord,  that 
the  ancient  church  shows  us  to  what  point  the  entire  in- 
spiration of  the  Scriptures  was  for  her  an  indisputable 
axiom ;  she  shall  show  it  to  yon  still  more  strongly,  if 
you  Avill  follow  her  in  her  attempts  to  reconcile  the 
APPARENT  contradictions  in  the  gospel  narratives. 
Whenever  she  attempts  an  explanation,  she  does  not  in- 
sist on  it;  but  she  hastens  to  conclude  that,  whatever  the 
value  of  her  explanation,  a  reconciliation  of  these  pas- 
sages exists  necessarily,  and  that  the  difficulty  is  only 
apparent;  because  its  origin  is  in  our  ignorance,  and 
not  in  the  Scriptures.  "  Whether  it  be  so,  or  not  (says 
she  with  Julius  Africanus.)  is  of  no  moment,  the  gospel 
remains  entirely  true!""*     That  is  always  her  conclu- 

'  T(5  jiivroi  'Eua>>£Xcoi/  Trdj/rojj  d'SriQzvTi.  In  his  letter  to  Aristiiles;  up- 
on the  harmony  of  the  gospels  relating  the  two  genealogies  of  Christ. 
(Euseb.  E.  H.  lib.  i.  c.  7.) 


CATECHISM.  341 

sion  upon  the  perfect  solubility  of  all  the  difficulties 
which  may  be  found  in  the  word  of  God. 

10.  7'he  anci»^nt  Church  was  strongly  attachpd  to 
the  doctiine  of  the  personality  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  and 
of  his  sovereign  action  in  the  composition  of  all  the 
Scripturi  s  ;  yet  she  never  found  any  difficulty  in  admit- 
ting at  the  same  time  the  greatest  variety  and  the  great- 
est Ubeity  in  the  phenomena,  the  occasions,  the  persons, 
the  characters,  and  all  the  exterior  circumstances,  in  the 
concurrence  of  which,  this  work  of  God  \\as  accom- 
plished. At  the  same  time  that  she  recognised  with  St. 
Paul  that,  in  all  the  operations  of  this  Spirit,  '-it  is  one 
and  the  self  same  Spirit  who  divideth  to  every  man 
severally  as  he  will  ;"*  she  equally  admitted  that,  in  the 
work  of  theopneusty,  the  divine  efficiency  is  exercised 
in  the  midst  of  great  liberty  in  rfspect  to  the  human 
manifestations.  And  let  it  be  well  observed  that,  in  the 
anci<  nt  Church,  you  never  see  one  clsss  of  writers  adopt- 
ing one  of  these  views  (that  of  the  divine  casuality  and 
sovereignty.)  and  another  class  attaching  themselves  ex- 
clusively to  the  other  (that  of  human  personality  and  of 
the  diversity  of  the  occasions,  of  the  affections,  of  the 
lights,  of  the  style  and  other  circumstances  of  the  writer.) 
'-  If  it  were  thus,"  says  Rudelb.ich,  "  one  might  justly 
accuse  us  of  having  ourselves  forced  the  solution  of  the 
problern,  instead  of  exposing  with  fidelity  the  views  of 
the  ancient  Church."  But  no  ;  on  the  contrary,  you 
will  often  see  one  and  the  same  author  exhibit  both  these 
points  of  view  at  once  and  without  scruple ;  the  action 
of  God  and  the  personality  of  man.  This  we  see,  for 
example,  in  Jerome  ;  who,  in  speaking  of  the  peculiari- 
ties of  the  sacred  writers,  is  always  fixed  in  the  notion 

•  1  Cor.  xi.  11. 

29* 


342  CATECHISM. 

of  a  word  poured  by  God  into  their  minds.  This  we 
see  again  in  Irenseus,  who,  while  insisting-  more  than 
any  other  upon  the  action  of  God  in  the  inspiration  of 
the  Scriptures,  is  the  first  of  the  fathers  of  the  Church 
who  relates  to  us  in  their  details,  the  different  personal 
circumstances  of  the  evangelists.  You  will  find  the 
same  in  Augustine ;  you  will  find  it  even  in  that  father 
of  ecclesiastical  history,  Eusebius  of  Caesarea,  who  gives 
so  many  details  upon  the  few  authors  of  the  gospels  ;  and 
who  at  the  same  time  avows,  on  the  plenary  inspiration 
of  the  canonical  Scriptures,  the  most  rigorous  principles. 

11.  The  ancient  Church  shows  us  still  more  com- 
pletely by  two  other  signs,  her  idea  of  inspiration  ;  on 
the  one  side,  by  the  care  she  has  taken  to  establish  the 
RELATIONS  of  the  doctriue  of  the  theopneusty  with  the 
doctrine  of  the  gifts  of  grace  ;  on  the  other,  by  the  care 
she  has  taken  to  preseint  the  proofs  of  inspiration. 

12.  Finally,  if  the  ancient  Church  presents  this  spon- 
taneous (ungesuchte)  and  universal  harmony  in  the  doc- 
trine of  inspiration,  it  cannot  be  believed,  as  some  ima- 
gine, that  this  great  phenomenon  belongs  to  some  par- 
ticular system  of  theology,  or  can  be  explained  by  such 
a  system.  Nor  must  this  admirable  harmony  be  re- 
garded as  the  germ  of  a  more  complete  theory  which 
was  afterwards  to  establish  itself  in  the  church.  No, 
the  very  oppositions  which  from  time  to  time,  were 
made  by  the  heretics  of  the  first  centuries,  and  the 
NATURE  OF  THE  ANSWERS  which  weic  made  by  the  an- 
cient Church,  on  the  contrary,  show  us  clearly  that  this 
doctrine  was  profoundly  rooted  in  the  conscience  of  the 
church.  All  the  time  that  the  fathers,  in  defending  any 
truth  by  passages  of  the  Bible,  were  forcing  their  ad- 
versaries to  defend  themselves  only  by  denying   the 


CATECHISM.  343 

plenary  inspiration  of  these  divine  testimonies,  the 
Church  has  regarded  the  question  as  settled.  The  ad- 
versary assumed  the  place  of  a  judge  ;  there  was  no- 
thing more  to  say  to  him,  he  denied  the  Scriptures  to  be 
the  word  of  God !  what  could  be  done,  but  show  him 
the  deformity  of  his  own  argument,  and  to  say  to  him : 
see  where  you  are  !  as  one  shows  to  a  man  who  has 
disfigured  himself,  his  image  in  a  glass.  This  is  what 
the  fathers  have  done. 

Such  are  the  facts  ;  such  is  the  voice  of  the  Church. 

We  had  at  first  collected,  with  the  intention  of  giving  it 
here,  a  long  series  of  passages,  taken  first  from  Ireneus,* 
from  Tertul!ian,t  from  Cyprian, J  from  Origen,^  from 
ChrysostomJI  from  Justin  Martyr,^  from  Epiphanius,** 
from  Augustine,tt  from  Athanasius.Jt  fi'om  Hilary,§§ 
from  Basil  the  great.  |1||  froni  Gregory  the  great,^*ir 
from  Gregory  of  Myssa,***  from  Theodoret.fft  from 

*  Advers.  haereses,  lib.  ii.  c.  47. — Lib.  iii.  c.  11.— Lib.  iv.  c.  34. 

t  De  anima,  c  2S. — Advers.  Marcion..  lib.  iv.  c.  22.  De  Praescrip.  adv. 
hceret.,  c.  25. — Advers.  Hermos.,  c.  22. 

t  De  opere  et  eleemos.,  p.  197—201. — Adv.  Quirin.,  Adv.  Judseos.  praefat. 

§  Ilomil.  .\.\xix.  in  Jerem  (already  quuted  al)ove,  rh.  vi.  sect.  1.)— Homil. 
ii.  in  eumd.  (cap.  xi.\.  and  L.)  — Iloniil.  xxv.  in  Mail). — Ejusd.  Pliiloc-ilia,  lib. 
iv.— Commeniar.  in  Matlhaum.,  p.  227 — 128.  (edit.  Huet.) — Humil.  xxvii.  on 
Numb.— In  Levit..  hoin.  v. 

1  Homil.  xlix.  on  John.— Homil.  xl.  on  John  v. — Homil.  ix.  on  2  Tim.  iv. 
— Serm.  53,  de  util.  Ject.  script.- 3  de  Lazaro. 

•a  Apol,  I.  c.  33  and  35,  50,  51.— Dialog,  coiitr.  Tryph.,  c.  7.-Ad  Graecos 
cohort.,  c.  8. 

"  StJjTO/iOf  \d-y6i  -rspi  ni^ccjs — De  Doct  Christi,  lib.  ii.  c.  9.  De  Pastor., 
cap.  2.— Epist.  xlii. 

tf  Epist.  xcvii.  (ad  Hieron.)— De  unitate  Ecclesiae,  c.  iii.  t.  ix.  p.  341 
(Paris,  1694.) 

U  Contra  Gentes,  1. 1,  p.  1  — De  Incarnat.  Christi  (Paris,  1627.) 

§§  Ad  Constant.  Aug..  p.  244.— De  Trinit.,  lib  vjii.  (Paris  1652.) 

ai  Comment,  on  Isa  1. 1,  p.  379(ed.  Bei^ed.)— Horn,  .x.xix.  advers.  calumni- 
antes  S.  Trinit.— In  Ethicis  regul  xvi,  Ixxx,  cap.  22. 

nil  Moralia  in  .lob,  praefat.,  c.  i. 

*"  Dialo?.  de  anima  ef  re.siirr.,  tom.  I.  edit,  graecolat.,  p.  639.— De  cog- 
nit.  Dei  cit.  ab  Euihymio  in  Panoplia.  Tit.  viii. 

tft  Dial.  I,  ilr/)£7rr— Dial.  H,  Acrvyx^r-ln  Ex.  Qu.  xxvi.— In  Gen.  Qu.  xlv. 


344  CATECHISftf. 

Cyril  of  Alexandria,*  from  the  most  esteemed  Fathers 
of  the  succeeding  ages;  and  finally  from  the  holiest 
writers  of  the  reformation  f  But  we  have  at  once 
perceived  that  all  these  names,  if  we  gave  m.erely  names, 
would  present  themselves  merely  as  a  vain  appeal  to 
human  authority  ;  and  that  if  we  gave  them  with  their 
quotations,  they  would  too  much  extend  this  chapter. 

Eagerly  then,  we  hasten  to  quote  the  greatest  of 
teachers,  our  master  Jesus  Christ,  and  to  make  him 
heard  when  he  speaks  of  the  Scri])tures,  and  above  all. 
heard  when  he  quotes  them.  Among  the  most  ardent 
defenders  of  their  verbal  inspiration,  we  know  no  man 
v/ho  has  ever  expressed  himself  with  more  respect  fox 
the  totally  divine  authority  and  permanence  of  their 
least  expressions,  than  the  man  Jesus.  And  we  do  not 
fear  to  say  that,  if  any  modern  writer  should  quote  the 
Bible  for  the  statement  of  some  doctrine  in  the  manner 
of  Jesus  Christ,  he  must  immediately  be  ranked  among 
the  highest  partisans  of  the  doctrine  we  defend. 

*  Lib.  vii.  cont.  Jul.  Glaphyrortim  in  Oen.,  lili.  ii. 

t  See  Lardner,  vol.  II.  p.  172,  438,  495.— IJaldaiie,  Insp.  of  II.  Scrip.,  p. 
167  to  1/0. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

SCRIPTURAL  PROOF  OF  THE  THEOPNEUSTY. 

Let  us  then  open  the  Bible.  What  does  it  say  of  its 
own  inspiration  ? 

SECTION  I. 

All  Scripture  is  llieopneustlc. 

We  shall  begin  by  quoting-  again  this  passage  so 
often  repeated  (2  Tim.  iii.  16:)  all  hnly  Scrijjture  is 
Tkeojmeustic,  that  is  to  say,  all  is  given  by  the  Spirit  or 
by  the  breath  of  God. 

Vve  have  showed  that  this  sentence  admits  neither  of 
exception  nor  of  restriction. 

It  admits  not  of  exception  ;  it  is  the  whole  Scrip- 
ture, all  that  is  writlen^  [naaa  yQ"^q>ri)  that  is  to  say,  the 
thoughts  that  have  already  put  on  the  clothing  of  lan- 
guage. It  admits  of  no  restriction ;  all  Scripture  is  so 
far  a  work  of  God,  that  it  is  represented  to  us  as  given 
by  the  breath  of  God,  in  the  same  manner  as  the  Avord 
of  a  man  is  given  by  the  breath  of  his  mouth.  The 
prophet  is  the  mouth  of  the  Most  High.  The  import 
of  this  declaration  of  St.  Paul  remains  the  same  in  both 
constructions  of  his  language  ;  whether  we  place,  as 
our  version  does,  the  affirmation  of  the  phrase  upon  the 
word  OirOTrevGJo;  {^dh'iiiely  inspired.)  the  verb  is.  being 
und^^rstood  [oJl  Scrijjture  is  given  by  inspiration  of 
God.  and  is  profitable,  &,c. ;)  or  make  dedntevaiog  only 
a  determinative  adjective,  and  confine  the  verb  of  affirma- 


346  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

tion  to  the  following  words,  [all  Scripture  given  by  in- 
spiroJioii  ofGod^  is  'profitable^  &C.)  This  last  construc- 
tion would  give  even  more  force  than  the  former,  to  the 
Apostle's  declaration.  For  then,  his  proposition,  neces- 
sarily referring  to  the  Holy  letters,  [lu  i'euu  y^,uuu(xTa) 
of  Avhich  he  had  just  spoken,  would  suppose  as  an  ad- 
mitted and  incontestible  principle,  that  to  call  them  Holy 
letters,  is  to  indicate  thereby,  that  they  are  writings  in- 
spired by  God.* 

It  will  be  well  however  to  draw  this  same  truth  from 
some  other  declarations  of  our  sacred  books. 

SECTION  II. 

All  the  ivords  of  the  Prophets  are  given  by  God. 

St.  Peter,  in  his  second  Epistle,  at  the  close  of  the 
first  chapter,  speak  thus;  "knowing  this  first,  that  no 
prophecy  of  the  Scriptures  is  of  any  private  interpreta- 
tion. For  the  prophecy  came  not  in  old  time  by  the 
will  of  man  :  but  holy  men  of  God  spake  as  they  were 
moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost." 

Remark,  on  this  passage: 

1.  That  it  here  refers  to  written  revelations,  nQOifrjiela 
YQacfv^g  ; 

2.  That  nerer  {n6  nute)  did  any  one  of  these  writings 
come  by  the  impulse  or  the  government  of  the  uvJl  of 
man  ; 

3.  That  those  holy  men  were  impelled  and  borne  by 
the  Floly  Spirit,  w^en  th^^y  wrote  and  spoke  ; 

4.  Finally,  that  these  writings  are  called,  prophecy. 
Before  advancing  fnther,  it  will  be  well  to  dttermine 

with  precision,  the  Scripture  meaning  of  these  words  ; 

•  Refer  to  the  5tli  Cliiipter  of  this  work,  §  1,  Quest.  XXVII. 


THE   PROPHETICAL   BOOKS   IN  SPIRED.  347 

'pro'phecy,  to  projphesy^  frophet^  {^"Zu)  because  this  know- 
ledge is  indispensable  to  our  investigation,  and  also 
throws  great  light  over  the  whole  question. 

Varied  and  inaccurate  meanings  have  been  generally 
attached  to  the  Bible  term  prophet,  but  an  attentive  ex- 
amination of  the  passages  in  which  it  is  used,  will  soon 
convince  us  that,  in  the  Scriptures,  it  always  designates — 
a  man  whose  lips  utter  the  word  of  God. 

Among  the  Greeks,  those  who  were  first  called  by 
this  name,  were  the  interpreters  and  organs  of  the  pro- 
phecies spoken  in  the  temples  (t'l'f/^rTJ;  s^de^v  /uuv- 
lelu))'.)  This  use  of  the  term  is  eloquently  expressed  by 
a  passage  from  Plato,  in  his  Timseus.*  The  most  cele- 
brated prophets  of  pagan  antiquity  were  those  of  Del- 
phos.  They  conducted  the  pythoness  to  the  tripod,  and 
were  themselves  commissioned  to  interpret  and  digest 
the  oracles  of  their  god.  And  it  was  afterward  only  by 
an  extension  of  this  first  meaning,  that  the  name  of  pro- 
phet vras  given  by  the  Greeks  to  the  poets,  who,  begin- 
ning their  songs  by  the  invocation  of  Apollo  and  the 
muses,  were  supposed  to  utter  the  language  of  the  gods, 
and  to  speak  under  their  inspiration. 

A  prophet,  in  the  Bible,  is  then,  a  man  in  whose 
mouth  God  puts  the  word  he  would  cause  to  be  spoken 
to  man  ;  and  it  was  also  in  allusion  to  the  plenitude  of 
this  sense,  that  God  said  to  Moses  ;  '•  I  have  made  thee 
a  god  to  Pharaoh,  and  Aaron  thy  brother  shall  be  thy 
prophet  ;"  as  he  had  before  said,t  "  He  shall  be  to 
thee  instead  of  a  mouth,  and  thou  shalt  be  to  him  instead 
of  God." 

Listen  to  the  prophets  in  the  Scriptures,  as  they  testify 
of  the  Spirit  which  caused  them  to  speak,  and  of  the 

*  T.  ix.  Ed.  Bipont.,  p.  392.  t  Exod.  vii.  1 ;  chap.  iv.  verse  16. 


348  SCRirTURAL    PROOF. 

divine  authority  of  their  language.  You  will  ever  hear 
from  them  the  same  definition  of  their  office  and  of  their 
inspiration.  They  speak  ;  it  is  true,  their  voice  is  heard 
their  frame  is  agitated,  their  very  soul  is  often  moved 
but  their  words  proceed  not  from  themselves  alone 
they  are  at  the  same  time,  the  words  of  the  Most  High. 
"  The  mouth  of  the  Lord  of  hosts  hath  spoken ;  the 
Most  High  hath  spoken,"  say  they  unceasingly.*  '•  I 
will  open  my  mouth  in  the  midst  of  them,"  says  the 
Lord  to  his  servant  Ezekiel.  "  The  spirit  of  the  Lord 
spake  by  me,  and  his  word  was  in  my  tongue,"  said  the 
royal  psalmist,  "  Hear  the  word  of  the  Lord."t  It  is 
thus  that  the  prophets  announce  their  messages^  "  The 
word  of  the  Lord  was  then  upon  me,",  say  they  often. 
'•  The  word  of  God  came  unto  Shemaiah  ;"  "  The  word 
of  God  came  to  Matthew.  The  word  came  unto  John 
in  the  wilderness.^  The  word  that  came  to  Jeremiah 
from  the  Lord  ;  the  word  that  was  given  to  Jeremiah  j 
the  burden  of  the  word  of  the  Lord  to  Israel  by  Mala- 
chi  :||  the  word  of  the  Lord  that  came  unto  Hosea  ;^  in 
the  second  year  of  Darius  the  king,  came  the  word  of 
the  Lord  by  Haggai  the  prophet ,"  this  word  descended 
on  the  men  of  God  when  it  would,  and  often  in  the  most 
unlocked  for  manner.  Thus  God,  when  he  sent  Moses, 
said  to  him  ;  •'  I  will  bo  thy  mouth  ;"**  and  when  he 
made  Balaam  speak,  he  "  put  his  word,"  it  is  written, 
"  in  the  mouth  of  Balaam." tf    ;  Thus  the  apostles,  raak- 

'  ?il;c.  iv.  4. — Jer.  ix.  12:  xiii.  15;  xxx.  4;  1.  i.  ;  li.  r2.— Isa.  viii.  11.- 
Amos,  iii.  1.— Deut.  xviii.  21,  2:i. 

t  2  Sam.  xxiii.  1,2.  J  U;i.  xxviii.  14  ;  Jer.  ix.  20. 

§  1  King.  xii.  '2:i  ;  1  Chr.  xvji.  3;  Luke,  iii.  2. 

S  Jer.  xi.  1  ;  xviii.  1 ;  xxi.  I ;  xxv.  1  ;  xxvi.  1  ;  xwii.  1  ;  xxx.  1  ;  and  fre- 
naently  elsewhere.— See.  Isa.  i.  2;  .Icr.  i.  1,  2,  9,  14  ;  Ezek.  iii.  4,  10,  11  ; 
Hos.  i.  1,  2 ;  Mularhi,  i.  9  ;  &c.  li  Hos.  i.  1.2. 

**  Exod.  iv.  12,  15.  tt  tvf./SuXcv  {oi  Ixx.)    Num.  xxiii.  5. 


THE    PROPHETIC    BOOKS    INSPIRED.  349 

mg".  in  their  prayer,  a  qnotalion  from  David,  express 
themselves  in  these  words  ;  it  is  thou  Lord,  who  hast 
SPOKKN  b}?  the  MOUTH  of  D.ivid  thy  servant.*  And  St. 
Peter  addr<-ssing  the  multitude  of  disciples:  '•  men  and 
brethren,  it  must  needs  be  that  this  Scripture  should  be 
fulfilled,  which  the  holy  spirit  hath  before  spoken,  by 
THE  mouth  of  David,  concerning  Judas. "f  Thus,  the 
same  apostle,  di  clared  to  the  people  of  Jerusalem,  ia 
Solomon's  porch  ;  "  But  those  things  which  God  before 

HAD  SHOWED  BY  THE  MOUTH  OF  ALE  IHS  PROPHETS,    &:-C.:|: 

To  the  Apostles,  then,  David  in  all  his  songs,  and  all 
the  prophets  in  their  writings,  whatever  may  have  been 
the  pious  emotions  of  their  souls,  were  but  the  mouth  of 
the  Holy  Spirit.  It  was  David,  who  spoke  ;  they  were 
the  prophets  who  announced,  but  it  was  God  also  who 
spoke  by  the  mouth  of  David,  his  servant ;  it  was  God 
WHO  had  announced  by  the  mouth  of  all  his  prophets. 
And  let  this  expression  so  often  repeated  in  the  Gospels, 
and  so  conclusive,  be  carefully  examined  in  the  Greek: 
"  in  order  that  that  might  be  fulfilled  which  was  spoken 
OF  the  Lord,  by  the  prophet  [vno  lod  xu()(ou  J  [A  rov 
TT^oqcTJTou,)  saying,"^  .  .  .  It  is  in  a  sense  altogether  an- 
alogous, that  the  Holy  Scriptures  give  the  name  o( pro- 
phets to  the  lying  imposters  among  the  Gentiles,  in  the 
temples  of  the  false  gods  ;  whether  they  were  vulgar 
cheats,  falsely  pretending  to  divine  visions;  or  were 
really  the  mouth  of  an  occult  power,  of  a  wicked  angel, 
and  of  a  spirit  of  Python  I| 

And  it  is  still  in  the  same  sense,  that  St.  Paul  in  quot- 
ing a  verse  from  Epimenides,  poet,  priest,  and  divine, 

•  Acts,  iv.  25.  t  Acts,  i.  16.  J  Acts,  iii.  18. 

§  Mat.  i.  22;  ii.  5,  15,  23 ;  xiii.  35;  xxi.  4. 

I!  Acts,  .\vi.  16.     See  1  Sam.  xxviii.  7.     1  Chron.  x.  13.     Levit.  xix.  26,  31 ; 
ix.  26,  27.    Isa.  viii.  19. 

30 


350  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

among  the  Cretans,  called  him  one  of  their  prophets  ; 
because  all  the  Greeks  consulted  hirn  as  an  oracle:  and 
Nicias  went,  on  the  part  of  the  Athenians,  to  take  him 
from  Crete,  to  purify  their  city  ;  and  Aristotle,  Strabo,* 
Suidasf  and  Diogenes  Laertius,J  tell  us  that  he  pre- 
tended to  announce  the  future,  and  to  discover  unknown 
things. 

From  all  these  quotations,  it  remains  thus  established, 
that  in  the  language  of  the  Scriptures,  the  prophecies  are 
"  words  of  God,  put  into  the  mouth  of  men."  It  is  thus 
then,  by  an  evident  abuse,  that,  in  the  vulgar  language, 
some  pretend  to  understand  by  this  word,  only  a  miracu- 
lous prediction.  The  prophets  could  reveal  the  past  as 
well  as  the  future:  they  denounced  the  judgments -of 
God  ;  they  interpreted  his  word  ;  they  sang  his  praises ; 
they  consoled  his  people;  they  exhoited  souls  to  holi- 
ness ;  they  rendered  testimony  to  Jesus  Christ.  And  as 
no  prophecy  came  by  the  will  of  man  ;^  a  prophet  as  we 
have  already  given  to  understand,  was  a  prophet  only 
by  intervals,  arid  as  the  spirit  made  him  speak.^ 

A  man  prophesied  sometimes  without  anticipating  it, 
sometimes  again,  without  knowing  it,  and  sometimes 
even  without  willing  it. 

I  have  said,  without  anticipating  it ;  and  often  even 
fit  the  very  moment  when  he  might  be  least  expecting 
it.  Such  was  the  old  prophet  of  Bethel. 1^  I  have  said ; 
without  knowing  it ;  such  was  Caiaphas.**  I  have 
finally  said  ;  without  willing  it.  Such  was  Balaam, 
when  wishing  three  times  to  curse  Israel,  he  was  thrice 
->5jimable  to  utter  any  thing  but  blessings.ft 

*  Geogr.  lib.  x.  t  Tn  voce,  {Eni^tv.)  X  Vita  Epimen. 

§  2  Peter,  i.  21.  II  Acts,  ii.  4.  II  1  Kings,  xiii.  20. 

*'  John,  xi.  51  tl  Numbers,  xxiii.  24. 


THE   FROPHETICAL   BOOKS   INSPIRED.  351 

We  will  give  other  examples  of  it,  to  complete  the 
demonstration  of  what  a  prophecy  is  in  general,  and 
thus  to  arrive  at  a  more  full  comprehension  of  the  ex- 
tent of  the  action  of  God  in  that  which  St.  Peter  calls 
written  'prophecy* 

We  read  in  Numbers,  xi.  25  to  29  ;  that  as  soon  as 
the  Lord  had  caused  the  Spirit  to  rest  on  the  seventy 
elders,  "  they  prophesied  ;"  but,  it  is  added,  "  they  did 
not  continue."  The  Spirit  came  upon  them  in  an  un- 
expected moment;  and  after  he  had  thus  -  spoken  by 
them,  and  his  word  had  been  upon  their  tongue,"! 
they  preserved  no  longer  any  thing  of  this  miraculous 
gift,  and  were  prophets  only  a  day. 

We  read,  in  the  1st  book  of  Samuel,  (chap,  x.)  with 
what  unexpected  power,  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  seized  the 
young  King  Saul,  at  the  moment  when,  seeking  his 
father's  asses,  he  met  a  company  of  prophets,  who  were 
coming  down  from  the  holy  place  :  "  What  has  hap- 
pened to  the  son  of  Kish  ?"  they  asked  one  another, 
'•  Is  Saul  also  among  the  prophets  ?" 

We  read  in  the  nineteenth  chapter,  something  still 
more  striking — Saul  sends  n^en  to  Rama  to  seize  Da- 
vid;  but  immediately  when  they  have  met  Samuel  and 
the  assembly  of  the  prophets  over  whom  he  presided, 
the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  comes  upon  these  men  of  war; 
and  "they  also  become  prophets."  Saul  sends  others  ;: 
and  "  they  also  prophesy."  Finally,  Saul  himself  goes,  ■ 
'•and  he  also  piophesies,  all  that  day  and  night,  before 
Samuel."  The  Spirit  of  God,  it  is  said,  came  upon  him." 
But  it  is  particularly,  by  an  attentive  study  of  the  twelfth 
and  fourteenth  chapters  of  the  first  Epistle  to  the  Corin- 
thians, that  we  arrive  at  the  exact  knowledge  of  what 

•  TTpocpriTUiv  ypaipni.  f  2  Sam.  xxiij.  1,  2. 


352  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

was  the  divine,  and  what  the  hunnan  action  in  the  pro- 
phecy. 

The  apostle  there  lays  down  rules  to  the  Corinthian 
Church,  for  the  right  employment  of  this  miraculous 
gift.  His  counsel  will  shed  great  light  on  this  impor- 
tant subject.  The  following  facts  will  at  once  be  recog- 
nised in  this  passage  ; 

1.  The  Holy  Spirit,  at  that  time,  conferred  a  great 
variety  of  gifts  upon  believers,  for  the  general  good  ;*  to 
one,  that  of  miracles  ;  to  another,  that  of  hea  .ing  ;  to  an- 
other, the  discerning  of  spirits;  to  another,  the  use  of 
foreign  languages,  which  the  speaker  himself  did  not 
understand,  while  uttering  them  ;  to  another,  the  power 
of  interpreting  them  ;  and  to  another,  that  of  prophesy- 
ing.  that  is,  of  speaking  in  his  own  language,  words 
dictated  by  God ; 

2.  One  and  the  same  Spirit  distributed  the  divers  mi- 
raculous powers  at  his  own  pleasure;! 

3.  These  gifts  were  a  just  subject  of  zeal  and  chris- 
tian ambition.  J:  But  the  gift  which  they  were  to  regard 
as  most  desirable,  was  that  of  prophesying- ;  for  they 
might  speak  an  unknown  tongue,  without  edifying  any 
one;  and  this  miracle  was  rather  useful  to  unbelievers 
than  to  believers  ;  whilst  the  gift  of  prophesying  edified, 
exhorted  and  consoled.^ 

4.  'J'his  prophecy,  that  is  to  say,  these  words  that  de- 
scended miraculously  upon  the  lips  which  the  Holy 
Spirit  had  chosen  for  such  an  office,  put  on  very  differ- 
ent forms.  Sometimes  an  instruction  ;  sometimes  a  re- 
velation ;  sometimes  too  it  was. a  miraculous  interpreta- 

*  1  Cor.  xii.  7,  13.  t  Versell.    See  al.so  Eph.  iv.  7 ;  Act  xix.  1—6. 

t  ^tiXovrc,  1  Cor.  xiv.  1,  39  §  1  Cor.  xiv.  1—3. 


THE   PROPHETIC    BOOKS   INSPIRED.  353 

lion  of  that  which  others  had  miraculously  spoken  in 
foreign  tongues.* 

5.  There  was  evidently  in  these  prophecies,  a  work 
of  man  and  a  work  of  God.  They  were  the  words  of 
the  Holy  Spirit ;  but  they  were  also  the  words  of  the 
prophet.  It  was  God  who  spake  ;  but  in  men,  by  men, 
and  for  men  ;  and  you  would  there  have  found  the  sound 
of  their  voice ;  perhaps  too  the  habitual  turn  of  their 
style  ;  perhaps  too,  aUusIons  to  their  personal  experi- 
ence, to  their  present  position,  to  their  individuality. 

6.  These  miraculous  facts  were  continued  in  the 
primitive  church  during  the  long  career  of  the  apostles. 
Saint  Paul,  w^ho  wrote  the  letter  to  the  Corinthians, 
twenty  years  after  the  death  of  Jesus  Christ,  speaks  to 
them  of  these  gifts  as  of  a  common  and  habitual  order 
of  things,  which  had  existed  then  for  some  time  among 
them,  and  was  still  to  continue. 

7.  The  prophets,  although  they  w-ere  the  mouth  of 
God,  to  announce  his  words,  were  yet  not  absolutely 
passive,  while  they  were  prophesying. 

"  The  spirits  of  the  prophets,  says  St.  Paul,  are  sub- 
ject to  the  prophets  :"t  that  is  to  say;  that  the  men  of 
God,  while  the  prophetical  w^ord  was  upon  their  lips, 
could  yet  prevent  the  utterance  of  it,  by  the  repressive 
action  of  their  own  will ;  almost  as  a  man  suspends, 
when  he  chooses,  the  otherwise  almost  involuntary 
course  of  his  respiration.  Thus,  for  example,  if  some 
■revelation  came  down  upon  one  who  was  sitting  in  the 
assembly,  "the  first  who  was  speaking,  must  cease,  and 
be  re-seated  to  give  place  to  him  " 

Let  us  now  apply  these  principles  and  these  facts  to 
the  prophecy  of  Scripture  {xriTZQOipTji&td  youqp^;,)  and  to 

•  Verses  26,31,  and  ISam.  x.  6  ;  xviii.  10.  1 1  Cor.  xiv.  32. 

30* 


354  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

the  passage  of  St.  Peter,  for  the  exposition  of  which,  we 
have  brought  them  forward. 

"  No  prophecy  of  the  Scripture,  he  says,  is  of  any 
private  interpretation  ;  for  the  prophecy  came  not  in  old 
time,  by  the  will  of  man  ;*  but  holy  men  of  God  spake 
as  they  were  moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost. 

See  then  the  full  and  entire  inspiration  of  the  Scrip- 
tures clearly  established  by  the  apostle  ;  see  the  Scrip- 
tures compared  to  those  prophecies  which  we  have  just 
been  defining.  They  "came  not  by  the  will  of  man,'' 
they  were  entirely  dictated  by  the  Holy  Spirit ;  they 
give  the  very  words  of  God  ;  they  are  entirely  (j'ldeog 
and  Otonvevaxoi)  given  by  the  breath  of  God.  Who 
would  then  dare,  after  such  declarations,  to  maintain, 
that  the  expressions  in  the  Scriptures  are  not  inspired? 
They  are  wr,itten  rROPHECiES  i^naaa  nQO(f7]X8la  y^tagpijc.) 
One  only  difficulty  can  then  be  presented  to  our  con- 
clusion. The  testimony  and  the  reasoning  upon  which  it 
rests,  are  so  conclusive,  that  there  is  no  escape  but  by 
this  objection  ;  "  we  agree,"  it  may  be  said,  "  that  the 
written  'prophecy  {nqocf^rixtLa  nQaoprig^  has  without  con- 
tradiction, been  composed  by  that  power  of  the  Holy 
"which  operated  in  the  prophets  ;  but  the  rest  of  the  book, 
as  also  the  Epistles,  the  Gospels  and  Acts,  the  Pro- 
verbs, the  book  of  Kings,  and  so  many  others  purely 
historical,  have  no  claim  to  be  placed  in  the  same 
rank." 

L'  t  us  then  stop  here  ;  and  before  replying,  let  us 
see  first,  how  far  our  argument  has  been  carried. 

It  should  already  be  admitted,  that  at  least  all  that 
part  of  the  Bible  called  prophecy  whatever  it  may  be, 

•  2  Peter  i.  21. 


OLD    TESTAMENT   PROPHETICAL.  355 

was  completely  dictated  by  God  ;  so  that  the  very  words, 
as  well  as  the  thoughts  were  given  by  him. 

But  then,  who  will  allow  us  to  establish  a  distinction 
between  any  one  book  whatever,  and  the  other  books  of 
the  Bible  ?  Is  not  every  thing  in  it  given  by  prophecy  ? 
Yes,  without  doubt,  every  thing  there  is  equally  dic- 
tated by  God  ;  this  we  are  now  to  prove. 


SECTION  III. 

All  ike  Scriptures  of  the  Old  Testaraent  are  Prophetical.^^ 

And  first ;  all  the  Scriptures  are  indiscriminately"^ 
called  THE  Word  of  God.  This  title  at  once  by  itself, 
would  be  sufficient  to  show  us  that,  if  Isaiah  commenced 
his  prophecies  by  inviting  the  heavens  and  the  earth  to 
hear,  btcause  the  Lord  hath  spoken  ;*  the  same  sum- 
mons should  address  us  from  all  the  books  of  the  Bible; 
because  they  are  all  called,  "  the  Word  of  God." 
"  Hear,  O  heavens,  and  thou  earth,  attend  ;  for  the 
Lord  hath  spoken  !" 

We  can  no  where  find  a  single  passage  which  per- 
mits us  to  detach  one  of  its  parts  from  the  others,  as  Jess 
divine  tiian  they.  To  say,  that  the  entire  book  "  is  the 
word  of  God  ;"  is  it  not  to  attest  that  the  very  phrases 
of  which  it  is  composed  were  dictated  by  him  ? 

Now  the  entire  Bible  is  not  only  named  the  '-word 
of  God''  (o  Ur^nz  lov  6tov:)  it  is  called  without  distinc- 
tion, THE   OPv-ACLES  OF  GoD    [id  16) i a  lOu    ^6o0.)f       WllO 

does  not  know  what  the  oracles  were,  in  the  opinions 
of  the  ancients?  Was  there  then  a  single  word  which 
could  express  more  absolutely  a  complete  and  verbal 
inspiration  ?  And  as  if  this  term  employed  by  St.  Paul, 

*  Isa.  i.  2.  t  Roman.s  iii.  2. 


356  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

did  not  suffice,  we  again  hear  Stephen.  "  filled  with  the 
Holy  Ghost,"  call  them  living  oracles  [I6pu  '^wfra ;) 
*'  Moses,  says  he,  received  the  living  oiacles,  to  give 
them  to  us."*  All  the  Scriptures,  without  exception, 
are  then  a  continued  word  of  God  j  they  are  his  mirac- 
ulous voice;  they  are  written  prophecies,  and  his  living 
oracles.  Which  of  their  diflerent  parts  would  you  then 
dare  to  retr(  nch  ?  The  apostles  olien  divided  them  rnto 
two  parts,  when  they  call  them  "  Moses  and  the  Pro- 
phets." Jesus  Chiist  divided  them  i/do  three  parlsi 
when  he  said  to  his  aposths,  "All  things  which  are 
written  concerning  me  in  Moses,  the  Prophets,  and  the 
Psalms,  must  be  fulfilled."  From  this  division,  in 
which  our  Lord  conformed  to  the  language  of  his  time, 
the  Old  Testament  was  composed  of  these  three  parts ; 
Moses,  the  Prophets  and  the  Psalms  ;  as  the  New  Tes- 
tament consists  of  the  Gospels,  the  Acts,  the  Epistles 
and  the  Apocalypse.  Which  then  of  these  parts  of  the 
Old  Testament,  or  which  of  these  four  parts  of  the 
New,  would  you  dare  to  separate  from  the  'prophetic 
Scripiwres  [nfjocpi^rtiag  y^'^gpTj.)  or  from  the  inspired 
word  (^d'Oeol)  Xuynu — '/^"y;^;  dtOTivevuiou']) 

Would  it  be  Moses?  But  what  is  there  more  holy 
or  more  divine  in  all  the  Old  Testament,  than  the  wri- 
tings of  that  man  of  God  1  He  was  so  great  a  prophet, 
that  his  holy  books  are  placed  above  all  the  rest,  and 
are  called  by  way  of  distinction,  thk  laU'.  He  was 
so  fully  a  prophet,  that  another  prophet,  in  speak- 
ing of  his  books  alone,  said  :  •■'  The  law  of  the  Lord  is 
perfect;;]:  the  words  of  the  Lord  are  pure  words  ;  they 
are  silver  refined  in  a  furnace,  seven  times  purified."^ 

•  Acts  vii.  38.  t  Luke  xxiv.  44. 

X  Ps.  xix.  7.  §  Ps.  xii.  ti. 


OLD   TESTAMENT   PEOPHETICAL.  357 

He  was  so  much  a  prophet,  that  he  compares  himself 
to  nothing  less  than  the  Son  of  God.  It  is  this  Moses, 
who  said  to  the  children  of  Israel:  "The  Lord  our 
God  will  raise  yo!i  up  a  prophet  like  tjnto  we,  from 
among  your  brethren  ;  hear  him."*  He  was  so  much 
a  prophet,  that  he  Avas  accustomed  to  preface  his  orders 
Vvdth  these  words  :  "  Thus  saith  the  Lord."  He  was 
so  much  a  prophet,  that  God  had  said  to  him :  "  Who 
hath  made  man's  mouth,  or  who  maketh  the  dumb,  .  .  . 
have  not  I,  the  Lord  ?  Now  therefore  go,  and  I  will 
be  with  thy  mouth,  and  teach  thee  what  thou  shall 
say."t  He  was  finally,  so  much  a  prophet,  that  it  is 
written :  "  And  there  arose  not  a  prophet  since  in 
Israel,  like  unto  Moses,  whom  the  Lord  knew  face  to 
face."t 

What  other  part  of  the  Old  Testament  would  you  ex- 
clude from  the  prophetic  Scriptures  ?  Would  it  be  the 
second  ;  that  which  Jesus  Christ  calls  the  Prophets, 
and  which  comprehends  all  the  Old  Testament  except 
Moses  and  the  Psalms,  and  sometimes  includes  even 
the  Psalms'?  It  is  worthy  of  remark  that  Jesus  Christ, 
and  the  apostles,  and  all  the  people,  habitually  applied 
the  title  of  Prophets^  to  all  the  authors  of  the  Old  Tes- 
tament. Their  habitual  designation  of  the  entire  Scrip- 
tures was  :  "  Moses  and  the  Prophets." §  Jesus  Christ 
called  all  their  books,  the  Prophets.  They  were  pro- 
phets. Joshua  then  was  as  fully  a  prophet  of  the  Lord 
as  Isaiah,  Jeremiah,  Ezekiel,  Hosea,  Daniel  and  all  the 
others,  even  to  Malachi.  All  of  them  wrote  then  the 
prophetic  writings  [ngocpr^Tslav    ygcKfri;  ;)  all  of  them 

*  Acts  vii.  37.  t  Exod.  iv.  11,  12.  J  Deut.  xxxiv.  10. 

§  Luke  xxiv.  25,  27,  44 ;  Matt.  v.  17  ;  vii.  12 ;  xii.  40 ;  Luke  xvi.  16,  29,  37 ; 
XX.  42;  Acts  iii.  21.  22,  &c.  &c. 


358  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

wrote  the  words  of  which  St.  Peter  tells  us .  "  that 
none  of  them  spoke  by  the  will  of  man  ;"  all  (those 
^Qix  y()(iupuTa^)  those  "  Holy  letters,"  which  the  apos- 
tle declares,  ''divinely  inspired."*  The  Lord  said  of 
fhem  all,  as  of  Jeremiah  :  "  Lo,  I  have  put  my  words 
•^in  thy  mouth  ;"t  and  of  Ezekiel :  "Son  of  man,  go, 
and  speak  my  words  to  them,  speak  to  them,  and  say  to 
them,  that  the  Lord,  the  Eternal  hath  thus  spoken  !"| 
And  that  all  the  phrases,  ail  the  words  were  given  them 
by  God,  i^  shown  clearly  by  a  fact  stated  more  than  once, 
and  which  the  study  of  their  writings  places  before  our 
eyes  ;  to  wit,  that  they  were  charged  with  transmitting 
to  the  Church,  oracles  whose  meaning  remained  still 
veiled  to  them.  Daniel,  for  example,  declares  more 
*han  once,  that  he  was  unable  to  seize  the  prophetical 
sense  of  the  words  that  he  uttered  or  wrote. §  The 
types,  imprinted  by  God  on  all  the  events  of  the  primi- 
tive history,  could  not  be  recognised,  until  many  ages 
after  the  existence  of  the  men  charged  with  relating  to 
us  their  features  ;  and  the  Holy  Spirit  declares  to  us, 
that  the  prophets,  after  having  written  their  holy  pages, 
applied  themselves  to  study  them  with  the  most  respect- 
ful attention,  as  they  had  done  the  other  Scriptures, 
searching  what  the  spirit  of  Christ,  which  was  in 
them,  DID  SIGNIFY,  when  he  foretold  the  sufferings  of 
Chcjst.'"||  Do  you  see  those  men  of  God,  bowed  over 
their  own  writings?  They  are  there  meditating  the 
words  of  God  and  the  thoughts  of  God.  Are  you  as- 
tonished at  it,  since  they  have  just  been  writing  for  the 
elect  of  the  earth,  and  for  the  principalities  and  powers 
of  heaven,*^!  the  doctrines  and  the  glories  of  the  Son  of 

•2Tim.  iii.  15.  t  Jer.  i.  1,2,  9.  J  Ezek   iii.  4,  11. 

§D;m.xii.  4.  8,  9;  viii.  27;  x.  8,21. 

II  I  Peter  i.  10,  11, 12.  i;  Eph.  iii.  10, 11. 


OLD  TESTAMENT  PROPHETICAL.         359 

God  ;  and  since  these  are  "  things  into  which  the  angels 
desire  to  look  ?" 

So  much  for  Moses  and  the  Prophets  ;  but  can  we 
say  it  of  the  Psalms  ?  Were  they  less  given  by  the 
spirit  of  prophecy,  than  all  the  rest?  Are  not  the 
authors  of  the  Psalms  always  called  prophets?*  And 
if  they  are  sometimes,  like  Moses,  distinguished  from 
the  other  prophets,  is  it  not  evidently  in  order  to  assign 
them  a  more  eminent  place  ?  David  was  a  prophet.f 
Hear  him  himself  tell  what  he  is  :  "  The  Spirit  of  the 
Lord  has  spoken  by  me,"  says  he,  "and  his  word  was 
UPON  MY  TONGUE."!  Whatever  David  wrote,  even  his 
least  words,  were  written  by  him,  "  speaking  by  the 
Holy  Spirit,"  says  our  Lord.§  The  Apostles  also,  in 
quoting  him,  in  their  prayer,  have  taken  pains  to  say  : 
"  That  must  be  fulfilled  which  was  spoken  by  the  Holy 
Ghost  through  the  mouth  of  David." ||  '•  Who,  by  the 
mouth  of  thy  servant  David,  hast  said."*^  What  do  I 
say  ?  The  Psalms  were,  to  such  a  degree,  dictated  by 
the  Holy  Spirit,  that  the  Jews,  and  that  Jesus  Christ 
himself,  called  them  by  the  name  of  the  law  :**  all 
their  words  made  laiu  :  their  least  words  were  of  God. 
"  Is  it  not  written  in  your  law?"  said  Jesus  Christ,  in 
quoting  them ;  and  in  quoting  them  even  for  one  single 
vjord^  as  we  shall  presently  be  called  to  show. 

All  the  Old  Testament  is  then,  in  the  scriptural  sense 
of  that  expression,  a  prophetic  writing.  [nQocpi/zeiu 
7?«(FTjc.)  It  is  then  plenarily  inspired  of  God  ;  since, 
according  to  the  testimony  of  Zacharias,  "  it  is  God 
who  hath  spoken  by  the  mouth  of  his  holy  prophets, 

hich  have  been  since  the  world  began  ;"tt  "  and  since," 

•  Malt.  xiii.  3.5  ;  for  Asaph,  Ps.  Ixxviii.  t  Acts  ii.  30. 

:  2  Sam.  xxiii.  1,  2.  §  Mark  xii.  36.  11  Acts  i.  16. 

t  Acts  iv.  25.  ••  .John  x.  34 ;  xii.  34.  tt  Luke.  i.  70. 


W 


360  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

accor4ing  to  Peter,  "  the  prophecy  came  not,  in  old  time, 
by  the  will  of  mnn,  but  holy  men  of  God  spake  as  they 
were  moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost."* 

It  is  true  that,  as  yet,  the  preceding-  arguments,  and 
the  testimonies  on  which  they  are  founded,  directly  re- 
gard only  the  Old  Testament ;  and  it  may,  perhaps,  be 
objected,  that  we  have  thus  far  proved  nothing  for  the 
New.  We  shall  commence,  before  replying,  by  asking 
if  it  is  probable  that  the  Lord  would  have  given  succes- 
sive revelations  to  his  people,  and  that,  at  the  same  time, 
the  most  recent  and  the  most  important  of  these  revela- 
tions should  be  inferior  to  the  first? 

We  will  ask,  if  it  would  be  rational  to  imagine  that 
the  first  Testament,  which  contained  only  "  the  shadow 
of  things  to  come,"  could  have  been  dictated  by  God,  in 
all  its  contents,  Avhile  the  second  Testament,  w'hich  pre- 
sents to  us  the  great  object,  the  substance  of  the  shadows, 
and  which  describes  to  us  the  works,  the  character,  the 
person,  and  the  very  words  of  the  Son  of  God,  should 
be  less  inspired  than  the  other.  We  will  ask  if  it  can 
be  believed  that  the  Epistles  and  the  Gospels,  destined 
to  revoke  many  of  the  ordinances  of  Moses  and  the  pro- 
phets, should  be  less  divine  than  Moses  and  the  prophets  ; 
and  that  the  Old  Testament  should  be  entirely  a  word 
of  God,  whilst  it  was  to  be  displaced,  or,  at  least,  modi- 
fied and  consummated,  by  a  book,  partly  the  word  of 
man,  and  partly  the  word  of  God  1 

But  there  is  no  necessity  for  resorting  to  these  power- 
ful inductions,  to  establish  the  prophetical  inspiration 
of  the  Gospel,  and  even  its  superiority  to  Moses  and  the 
prophets. 

•  2  Peter  i.  21.    See  also  Matt.  i.  21, 22 ;  xxii.  43 ;  Mark  xii.  36. 


NEW   TESTAMENT   PROPHETICAL.  361 

SECTION  IV. 

All  Uie  Scriptures  of  the  Neio  Testament  are  Prophetical. 

The  Scripture,  in  its  constant  language,  places  the 
vvriters  of  the  New  Testament  in  the  same  rank  with  the 
prophets  of  the  Old  ;  and  even,  when  it  establishes  any' 
difference  between  them,  it  is  always  to  place  those  that 
came  last,  above  the  first,  as  far  as  one  word  of  God  is 
superior  (not  in  divinity,  certainly,  not  in  dignity,  but  in 
authority,)  to  the  word  which  has  preceded  it. 

Let  the  following  passage  of  the  Apostle  Peter  be 
particularly  noticed.  It  is  very  important,  as  it  shows 
us  that,  in  the  life-time  of  the  Apostles,  the  book  of  the 
New  Testament  was  already  almost  entirely  formed,  to 
make  one  alone  with  that  of  the  Old.  It  was  twenty  or 
thirty  years  after  the  Pentecost,  that  St.  Peter  was  pleased 
ro  quote  "  all  the  Epistles  of  Paul^  his  well  beloved 
brother  ;"  and  that  he  spoke  of  them  as  "  sacred  wri- 
tings," which,  already  in  his  day,  made  part  of  the  Holy 
Letters  [Xeq^v  y Quu/ua jo)v^)  and  were  to  be  classed  "  with 
the  rest  of  the  Scriptures,  {(hg  xal  xaq  Aomd?  y^dgoag.) 
He  assigns  them  the  same  rank  ;  and  he  declares  to 
them,  that  "  ignorant  men  could  not  pervert  them,  but  to 
their  own  destruction." 

We  quote  this  important  passage;  "Even  as  our  be- 
loved brother  Paul  also,  according  to  the  wisdom  given 
unto  him,' hath  written  unto  you;  as  also  in  all  ms 
EPISTLES,  speaking  in  them  of  these  things ;  in  which 
are  some  things  hard  to  be  understood,  which  they  that 
are  unlearned  and  unstable,  wrest,  as  they  do  also  the 
other  Scriptures,  unto  their  own  destruction."* 

*  2  Peter  iii.  15,  16. 

31 


362  scRirxuKAL  proof. 

The  Apostle  in  the  second  verse  of  the  same  chapter, 
had  ah-eady  represented  himself  and  his  fellow-apostles 
as  occupying  the  same  rank  and  invested  with  the  same 
authority  as  the  sacred  writers  of  the  old  Testament, 
when  he  had  said:  "  Remember  the  words  which  were 
before  spoken  by  the  Holy  Prophets,  and  the  com- 
mandments which  you  have  received  from  us  Apostles 
of  the  Lord  and  Savior."  The  writings  of  the  Apostles 
were  then,  whatever  those  of  the  Old  Testament  were  ; 
and  since  the  latter  are  a  written  prophecy,  that  is  to 
say,  a  word  entirely  God's,  the  former  are  nothing  less. 

But  we  have  said,  the  Scripture  goes  farther,  in  the 
rank  which  it  assigns  to  the  writers  of  the  New  Cove- 
nant. 

It  teaches  us  to  consider  them  as  even  superior  to 
those  of  the  ancient,  by  the  importance  of  their  mission^ 
by  the  glory  of  the  projnises,  which  were  made  to  them, 
by  the  greatness  of  the  gifls  conferred  upon  them,  and 
finally  by  the  eminence  of  the  rank  which  is  assigned 
them. 

I.  Let  us  first  compare  their  mission  with  that  of  the 
ancient  prophets  ;  and  we  shall  quickly  see,  by  that 
alone,  that  their  inspiration  could  not  be  inferior  to  that 
of  their  predecessors. 

When  Jesus  sent  forth  the  Apostles  whom  he  had 
chosen,  he  said  to  them  :  "  Go  ye  therefore,  and  teach 
all  nations  to  observe  all  things  whatsoever  I  have  com- 
manded you :  and,  lo,  /  avi  with  yoih  alway,  even  unto  the 
end  of  the  world.  Amen."*  "  Ye  shall  receive  power, 
after  the  Holy  Ghost  is  come  upon  you  :  and  ye  shall 
be  witnesses  unto  me,  both  in  Jerusalem,  and  in  all 
Judea,  and  in  Samaria,  and  unto  the  uttermost  part  of  the 

•  Matt  .\xviii.  19,2a 


NEW   TESTAMENT   PROrHETICAL.  363 

earth."*     Peace  be  unto  you  ;  as  my  Father  hath  se?it 
Tiie^  even  so  sevA  1  ijnu.'\ 

Such  was  their  mission.  They  were  the  immediate 
envoyy<  [uwoioloi)  of  the  Son  of  God  ;  they  went  to  all 
the  nations  ;  they  had  the  assurance  that  their  Master 
would  be  always  present  with  the  testimony  which  they 
were  to  render  of  him  in  the  Holy  Scriptures.  Did 
they  then  need  less  inspiration  when  going  to  the  very 
extremities  of  the  earth,  than  the  prophets  needed  in 
going  to  Israel ; — when  making  disciples  of  all  the  na- 
tions, than  the  prophets  in  instructing  only  the  Jews? 
Had  they  not  to  promulgate  all  the  doctrines,  all  the  or- 
dinances and  all  the  mysteries  of  the  kingdom  of  God? 
Had  they  not  to  carry  the  keys  of  the  kingdom  of  hea- 
ven, so  that  whatever  they  should  bind  or  unbind  on 
earth, J  should  be  bound  or  unbound  in  heaven  1  Had 
not  Jesus  Christ  conferred  the  Hoi}''  Spirit  on  them,  ex- 
pressly in  order  that  whosesoever  sins  they  should  remit 
or  retain,  should  be  remitted  or  retained  1  Had  he  not 
breathed  upon  them,  saying :  "  Receive  ye  the  Holy 
Ghost'?"  Had  they  not  revealed  the  unheard  of  charac- 
ter of  the  Word  made  flesh,  and  of  the  Creator  stooping 
to  assume  the  form  of  a  creature,  and  even  to  die  upon 
a  cross?  Had  they  not  to  repeat  his  inimitable  \voids? 
Had  they  not  to  fulfil  upon  the  earth,  the  miraculous,, 
iiitransmissible  functions  of  his  representatives  and  of 
his  ambassadors,  as  though  it  were  Christ  who  spoke 
by  them  1^  Were  they  not  called  to  such  a  glory,  that 
in  the  last  and  great  regeneration,  "  when  the  Son  of 
Man  shall  sit  in  the  throne  of  his  glory,  they  also  shall 
sit  u-pon  twelve  thrones,  judging  the  twelve  tribes  of 

•  Acts  i.  8.  f  John  xx.  21. 

X  Matt,  xviii.  IS  :  xvi.  19.  §  2  Cor.  v.  20. 


364  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

Israel  ?"*  If  then  the  prophetical  spirit  was  necessary 
to  the  first  men  of  God,  in  order  to  present  the  Messiah 
under  shadows  ;  was  it  not  much  more  so  to  them,  to 
produce  him  in  the  light  of  his  actual  life,  and  to  set 
him  forth  as  crucified  in  the  midst  of  us  ;t  so  that  who- 
soever rejects  them,  rejects  him,  and  whosoever  receives 
them  receives  him  ?"  J  Judge  then  from  all  these  fea- 
tures of  their  mission,  what  must  have  been  the  inspira- 
tion of  the  New  Testament,  compared  with  that  of  the 
Old  ;  and  say  if,  whilst  this  was  entirely  and  totally 
prophetic,  that  of  the  New  could  have  been  inferior  to  it. 

II.  But  this  is  not  all :  let  us  again  hear  the  promises 
which  have  been  made  to  them,  for  the  accomplishment 
of  such  a  work.  Words  cannot  declare  it  more  forci- 
bly. These  promises  were  especially  addressed  to  them 
on  three  great  occasions  :  first,  when  they  were  sent  for 
the  first  time  to  preach  the  kingdom  of  God  ;§  in  the 
second  place,  when  Jesus  himself  delivered  public  dis- 
courses upon  the  gospel,  before  an  immense  crowd,  as- 
sembled by  myriads  around  him  ;||  in  the  third  place, 
when  he  uttered  his  last  denunciation  against  Jerusalem 
and  the  Jews.l" 

"  But  when  they  deliver  you  up,  take  no  thought  how 
or  WHAT  (71(7:?  TJ  xl)  ye  shall  speak ;  for  it  shall  be  given 
you  in  that  same  hour  what  ye  shall  speak.  For  it  is 
KOT  YE  that  speak,  but  the  Spirit  of  your  father  which 
speaketh  in  you."  "  And  when  they  bring  you  unto 
the  synagogues,  and  unto  magistrates  and  powers,  take 
ye  no  thought,  how  or  what  ye  shall  answer,  or  what 
ye  shall  say.  For  the  Holy  Ghost  shall  teach  you  m 
the  same  hour,  what  ye  ought  to  say."     "  Take  no 

•  Matt.  xix.  28.  t  Cal.  iii.  1.  J  Luke  x.  16 ;  Matt.  x.  40. 

$  Matt.  X.  19,20.         il  Mark  xiii.  11 ;  Luke  xxi.  14,  15.        it  Luke  xii.  12. 


NEW    TESTAMENET    PROPHETICAL.  865 

thought  before-hand,  what  ye  shall  speak,  neithkii  do 
YE  premeditate  ;  but  whatsoever  shall  be  given  you 
in  that  hour,  that  speak  ye ;  for  it  is  not  ye  that  speak, 
but  the  Holy  Ghost." 

On  these  different  occasions,  the  Lord  giv(S  his  dis- 
ciples the  assurance,  that  the  most  entire  i/mplration 
should  control  their  language,  in  the  most  difficult  aad 
importmt  moments  of  their  ministry.  When  they  should 
have  to  speak  to  princes,  they  were  to  exercise  no  solici- 
tude :  they  were  7iot  even  to  ihink  upon  it ;  because 
there  should  be  then  immediately  ginea  them  of  God, 
not  onlv  the  things,  which  they  should  have  to  say,  but 
also  the  loords  with  which  they  should  express  them  ; 
not  only  t/  but  nu:g  htlr^noi'un*  They  were  to  rely 
entirely  upon  him  ;  this  should  be  given  them  by  Jesus ; 
it  should  be  given  them  in  the  same  hour ,  it  should  be 
given  them  in  such  a  way,  and  in  such  a  plenitud*^,  that 
then  they  might  be  able  to  say,  it  is  ivo  moiik  thry,  but 
the  Holy  Spirit,  the  Spirit  of  thktr  Fathkr  speaking 
IN  them  ;  and  that  then  also,  it  was  not  only  wisdom 
that  could  not  be  gainsaid,  which  was  given  them  ;  it 

was  A  MOUTH  !  t 

'•  Settle  it  therefore  in  your  hearts,  not  to  meditate  be- 
fore, what  ye  shall  answer  ;  for  I  will  give  you  a  mouth 
and  wisdom,  which  all  your  adversaries  shall  not  be 
able  to  gainsay  nor  resist." 

Then  (as  with  the  ancient  prophf  ts,  Isaiah.  .Tpremiah, 
Ezidci'l.)  it  should  be  the  Holy  Spirit,  who  should  speak 
by  them,  as  ••  God  hath  spoken  by  the  mouth  of  all  his 
holy  prophets,  since  the  world  beo-an."^  In  one  sense, 
it  w£>uld  indeed  be  they  who  would  speak  ;  but  it  would 

•  Matt.  X.  19.  20.  t  Matt.  x.  29;  Mark  xiii.  11 ;  Luke  xxi.  14,  15. 

X  Acts  iii.  21 ;  Luke  i.  70. 

31* 


366  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

be  the  Holy  Spirit,*  who  should  teach  them,  in  that  same 
instant,  what  to  say ;  so  that,  in  another  sense,  it  would 
be  the  Spirit  himself,  speaking  by  their  lips. 

We  ask  if  it  was  possible,  in  any  language,  to  ex- 
press more  absolutely  the  most  entire  inspiration,  and 
to  declare  with  more  precision,  that  the  words  them- 
selves were  then  guaranteed  of  God,  and  given  to  the 
Apostles. 

It  is  very  true  that,  in  these  promises,  reference  is  not 
directly  made  to  the  aid  which  the  apostles  were  to  re- 
ceive as  writers,  but  rather  to  that  which  they  were  to 
expect,  when  they  should  have  to  appear  before  priests, 
before  governors,  and  before  kings.  But  is  it  not  suf- 
ficiently evident  that,  if  the  most  entire  inspiration  was 
insured  them,  for  temporary  occasions,!  to  stop  the 
mouths  of  some  wicked  men,  to  avert  the  dangers  of  the 
day,  and  to  secure  interests  of  the  smallest  importance  ; 
yet  if  it  was  promised  them,  that  then  the  very  words 
of  their  reply  should  be  given  them,  by  a  calm,  power- 
ful, but  inexplicable  operation  of  the  Holy  Spirit ;  is  it 
not  abundantly  evident,  that  the  same  aid  could  not  be 
refused  to  these  same  men,  when  they  should  iiave,  like 
the  ancient  prophets,  to  continue  the  book  of  the  oiacles 
of  God,  to  transmfi  to  all  ages  the  laws  of  the  kingdom 
of  henven  ;  to  describe  the  glories  of  Jesus  Christ,  and 
the  scpnes  of  eternity?  Could  any  one  imagine  that 
the  very  men  who.  before  Ananias,  or  Fcstus,  or  Nero, 
were  so  much  '-the  mouth  of  the  Holy  Spirit,"  that 
then  "  it  was  no  more  they  that  spnke,  but  the  Spirit  ;'* 
should  become,  when  writing  -the  eternal  gospel,"  ordi 
nary  beings,  merely  enlightened,  stripped  of  their  former 
inspiration,  speaking  no  more  by  th(^.  Holy  Spirit,  and 

•  Luke  xii.  12.  t  2  Pet.  i.  21  ;  1  Cor.  ii.  13 


NEW   TESTAMENT    PROPHETICAL.  367 

employing  thenceforward,  only  the  words  dictated  by 
h'iinan  wisdom?*     It  is  inadmissible. 

ILL  See  them  commencing  their  apostolic  ministry 
on  the  day  of  Pentecost;  see  what  gifts  ihey  receive. 
Tongues  of  fire  descend  on  their  head^  ;  they  are  filled 
with  th«  Holy  Spirit ;  they  come  down  from  their  up- 
per chamber,  and  all  the  people  hear  them  proclaim,  in 
fifteen  different  languages,  the  wonderful  works  of  God  ; 
AS  THE  SriraT  gives  them  utterancej  they  speak  the 
WORD  OF  G«iD.{  Surely,  then,  the  icords  of  these  un- 
known tongues  must  have  been  given  them,  as  well  as 
ike  things,  the  express'on  as  well  as  the  thought,  the 
7ro)5  as  well  as  theti'.^  Can  we  then  suppose  that  the 
Spirit  would  have  taken  the  pains  to  dictate  thus  to 
them  all  they  should  say,  in  preaching  at  the  corners 
of  the  streets,  in  words  which  pnssed  with  their  breath, 
and  which  reached,  at  most,  only  some  thousands  of 
men,  whilst  these  very  men,  when  they  afterwards 
came  lo  write,  for  all  the  ages  of  the  Church,  the  -'liv- 
ing oracles  of  God,"  should  see  themselves  deprived  of 
their  former  aid  ?  Can  we  suppose,  that  after  having 
been  greater  than  the  ancient  prophets,  in  order  to 
])reach  in  the  public  place  ;  they  were  less  than  these 
prophets,  and  became  ordinary  men,  when  they  took  up 
the  pen  to  complete  the  book  of  the  prophecies,  to  write 
their  Gospels,  their  Epistles,  and  the  book  of  their  Rev- 
elations %  The  inconsistency  and  inadmissibleness  of 
such  a  supposition  is  manifest. 

4.  But  we  have  something  to  say  here,  still  more 
simple  and  more  peremptory  :  we  mean  to  speak  of  the 
rank   assigned  them  ;  and  we  shall  be  able  to  confine 

*  OsAfj/iari  avdpcjnov,  Kai  iv  SiSaxro'ii  di/Opcjirivrj^  (jotpias  Xoyois-     2  Pet. 
i.  21 ;  1  Cor.  ii.  13.  t  Acts  ii.  4. 

}  'EXdXovv  Tov  X6yoi)  TOO  Oc'jv.  ActiS  iv.  31.        §  Matt  .\..  19  ;  Lukexii.  Ii 


368  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

ourselves  to  this  single  fact,  after  having  spoken  of  the 
prophets  of  the  Old  Testament.  It  is,  that  the  Apostles 
were  all  prophets,  and  more  than  prophets.  Their 
writings  are  then,  written  prophecies  [noo(piirelai 
YQucpui^)  as  much  as,  and  more  than  those  of  the  Old 
Testament;  and  we  are  thus  led  to  conclude  yet  once 
more,  that,  ail  Scripture,  in  the  New  Testament,  as  in 
the  Old,  is  inspired  of  God,  even  in  its  least  parts. 

I  have  said  that  the  Apostles  were  all  prophets. 
They  declare  so,  frequently.  But,  not  to  multiply  quo- 
tations needlessly,  we  content  ourselves  here  with  an 
appeal  to  the  two  following  passages  of  St.  Paul. 

The  first  is  addressed  to  the  Ephesians  (iii,  4,  5,:) 
^'  In  the  few  words  which  I  wrote  afore,  ye  may  un- 
derstand my  knowledge  in  the  mystery  of  Christ,  which 
in  other  ages  was  not  made  known  unto  the  sons  of 
men,  as  it  is  now  revealed  unto  his  holy  Apostles  and 
Prophets  by  his  Spirit." 

It  is  then  clearly  manifest  here  :  the  apnstle  and  pro- 
phet Paul,  the  apostles  and  prophets  Matthew,  John^ 
Jude,  Peter,  James,  have  received,  by  the  Spirit,  the 
revelation  of  the  mystery  of  Christ,  and  they  have  writ- 
ten of  it  AS  Prophets. 

fit  is  still  of  the  same  mystery  and  of  the  writings  of 
the  same  prophets,  that  the  same  Apostle  is  speakings 
in  the  second  of  the  passages  I  have  referred  to  ;  I 
mean,  in  the  last  chapter  of  his  Epistle  to  the  Romans.* 

"  Now  to  Him  that  is  of  power  to  establish  you  ac- 
cording to  my  gospel,  and  the  preaching  of  Jesus  Christ 
(according  to  the  revelation  of  the  mystery,  which  was 
kept  secret  since  the  world  began,  but  is  now  made 
manifest,  and  by  the  Scriptures  of  the  PROi'iiETS  or 

•  Rom.  XYJ.  25-27. 


KEW    TESTAMFNT    rROPHETICAC  369 

proplietic  writings  ,)  (diu  ts  yoncfiibv  7iQo<p-qrt)tc!n'^)  ac- 
cording- to  the  commandmf'nt  of  the  everlasting  God, 
made  knovvn  to  all  nations  for  the  obedience  of  faith; 
to  God  the  only  wise,  be  glory  through  Jesus  Christ, 
for  ever,  Amen." 

Behold  then  again,  the  authors  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment named  Prophets  ;  behold  their  writings  called 
rRoFHETic  "WRITINGS  ('/^w^at  7rQ0(fTjTixul.^  which  is  the 
synonymo  of  Peter's  Prophecy  (^nQo<fj]iein  ygcKfri;.) 
And  since  we  have  already  recog-nised  that  no  prophecy 
ever  came  from  the  personal  and  private  will  of  him 
that  attested  it ;  but  that  it  was,  as  moved  by  the  Holy 
Ghost,  that  holy  men  of  God  spoke ;  the  prophets 
of  the  New  Testament  have  then  spoken,  as  those  of  the 
Old,  and  according  to  the  commandment  of  the  Eternal 
God.     They  were  all  prophets.* 

But  even  that  is  not  enough^  for,  we  have  said  they 
were  more  than  prophets.  This  is  a  remark  of  the 
learned  Michaelis.f  In  spite  of  his  loose  principles  on 
the  inspiration  of  a  part  of  the  New  Testament,  this  ob- 
servation has  not  escaped  him.  It  is  clear,  according 
to  him,  from  the  context,  that,  in  the  sentence  of  Jesus 
Christ  upon  John  the  Baptist.^  the  words  great  and 
least  of  the  11th  verse,  apply  only  to  the  name  of  pro- 
phet, which  precedes  them  in  the  9th  verse  ;  so  that 
Jesus  Christ  there  declares  that  if  John  the  Baptist  is 
the  greatest  of  the  prophets — if  he  is  even  7n.ore  than  a 
prophet — the  least  of  the  prophets  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment is  still  greater  than  John  the  Baptist,  that  is  to  say^ 
greater  than  the  greatest  of  the  prophets  of  the  Old 
Testament.^ 

'  See  asjiiii  Luke  xi.  49 ;  Eph.  ii.  20  •  iii.  5  ;  iv.  11 ;  Gal.  1.  12  ;  1  Pet.  i.  12; 
i  Cor.  xi.  '23  ;  1  Tlie-ss.  ii.  15.  tlBtrod.,  t.  I.  p.  lib.  Freiirh  edit 

J  Mutt.  xi.  9—11.  §  Ibid,  and  Luke  -vii.  28—30. 


370  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

Moreover,  this  superiority  of  the  Apostles  and  Pro- 
phets of  the  New  Testament,  is  more  than  once  attested 
to  us  in  the  apostolical  writings.  Wherever  the  various 
offices  established  in  the  churches  are  spoken  of,  the 
Apostles  are  placed  before  the  Prophets.  Thus,  for 
example,  in  a  very  remarkable  passage  of  his  1st  Epis- 
tle to  the  Corinthians,  where  he  aims  to  show  the  gra- 
dation of  excellence  and  dignity  of  the  various  miracu- 
lous powers  bestowed  by  God  on  the  primitive  Church, 
the  Apostle  Paul  thus  expresses  himself:  "  God  hath 
set  some  in  the  church,  first,  apostles  ;  secondarily ^ 
PROPHETS  •  thirdly^  teachers  ;  after  that,  miracles  • 
then  gifts  of  healing,  helps,  government,  diversities  of 
tongues."* 

In  the  4th  chapter  of  his  Epistle  to  the  Ephesians,  at 
the  11th  verse,  he  again  places  the  apostles  above  the 
prophets. 

In  the  2d  chapter,  2  Cor.,  20th  verse,  he  calls  them 
Apostles  and  Prophets.  And  in  the  14th  chapter  of 
ist  Corinthians,  he  places  himself  above  the  prophets 
whom  God  had  just  raised  up  in  that  church.  He  de- 
sices  that  each  of  them,  if  he  has  truly  obtained  the 
Holy  Spirit,  should  employ  the  gifis  he  has  received^ 
to  recognise  in  Paul's  words,  God's  commandments , 
and  he  is  so  impressed  vv^ith  the  assurance  that  what  he 
writes  is  dictated  by  the  inspiration  of  God,  that  after 
having  given  orders  to  the  churches,  and  having  closed 
them  with  words  which  nothing  but  the  highest  inspir- 
ation can  authorize,  Thus  I  ordain  in,  all  the  Churches; 
he  does  more  ;  he  goes  on  to  rank  himself  above  the 
prophets  ;  or  rather,  he  himself  as  a  prophet,  summons 
the  spirit  of  prophecy  in  them,  to  recognise  the  words 

*  1  Cor.  xii.  28. 


NEW   TESTAMENT    PROPHETICAL.  371 

of  Paul  as  the  words  of  the  Lord  ;  and  he  closes  with 
these  remarkable  words:  "  VV^hat !  came  the  word  of 
God  out  FROM  YOU  ?  or  came  it  unto  you  only  ?  If  any 
man  think  himself  to  be  a  prophet,  or  spiritual,*  let 
him  acknowledge  that  the  things  that  I  write  unto 
YOU,  are  the  commandments  of  the  Lord." 

The  Apostles'  writings  are  then,  (as  those  of  the  an- 
cient prophets,)  "  commandments  of  the  Eternal  CTod  ;" 
they  are  "  written  prophecies,  {^nqoqrji&lu  yocq^ri^y^  as 
much  as  the  Psalms,  Moses,  and  Ike  PmphetsA  and  all 
their  authors  might  then  say  with  Paul  :  Christ  speak- 
ETH  BY  me,J  my  word  is  the  word  of  God,  and  my  dis- 
courses are  taught  me  by  the  Holy  Spirit  ^  just  as  David, 
before  them,  had  said:  " 'J'he  Spirit  of  the  Loid  hath 
spoken  by  me,  and  his  word  was  upon  my  tongue." || 

Hear  them  too,  when  they  themselves  tell  us  what 
they  are.  Would  it  be  possible  to  declare  more  charly 
than  they  have  done,  that  the  words  as  wf  11  as  the  siibj-ct 
were  given  them  by  God  ?  "  As  to  us,"  they  say,  ■'  we 
have  the  m.iad  of  Christ,^  '^  fov  this  cause  also  thank 
we  God  without  ceasing,  because,  when  ye  rfceived 
THE  v/ORD  OF  GOD  which  yc  heard  of  us,  ye  received  it 
not  as  the  word  of  men,  but  (as  it  is  in  truth)  thk  \vnni> 
OF  God."**  "  He,  therefore,  that  despisf  th,  de.^piseth 
NOT  MAN,  but  God,  who  also  hath  given  unto  us  his  Holy 

Spirit."tt 

Such  finally,  then,  is  the  word  of  the  New  Testament. 
It  is  like  that  of  the  Old,  a  word  of  prophets,  and  of 
greater  prophets  even  than  those  who  preceded  them  ; 
so  that,  for  example,  as  Michaelis  has  very  well  re- 


*  Tlvtviiarticog.    1  Cor.  xiv.  37. — Pee  too  w.  45,  find  .lude  19. 

t  Luke  xxiv.  44.  l  2  Cor  xiii.  3 ;  1  Thess.   ii.  13.  §  1  Cor.  fi.  13. 

I  2  Sam.  xxiii.  2.       H  1  Cor.  ii.  16.       *' 1  Thess.  ii.  13.       tl  1  Tiiess.  iv.a 


372  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

marked,*  an  Epistle,  which  commences  with  the  words: 
"  Paul,  an  apostle  of  Jesus  Christ,"!  thereby  attests 
to  us  more  strongly,  its  Divine  authority  and  prophetic 
inspiration,  than  did  even  the  writings  of  the  most  illus- 
trious prophets  of  the  Old  Testament,  when  they  opened 
their  messages  with  these  words :  "  Thus  saith  the 
Loid  ;|  the  vision  of  Isaiah  ;  the  word  that  Isaiah  saw  ;^ 
the  word  of  Jeremiah,  to  whom  came  the  word  of  the 
Lord  ;||  hear  the  word  of  the  Lord  ;" — or  other  anal- 
ogous expressions.  And  if  there  is,  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment, a  book  in  which  similar  inscriptions  are  not  found, 
its  theopneusty  is  no  more  thereby  compromised  than 
that  of  such  or  such  a  book  of  the  Old  Testament  (the 
second  or  ninety-fifth  Psalm,  for  example,)  which,  al- 
though the  name  of  the  prophet  who  wrote  them  is  not 
inscribed,  are  none  the  less  quoted  as  divine,  by  Jesus 
Christ  and  his  apostles.  1^ 

It  may  have  been  sometimes  objected,  that  Luke  and 
Mark  were  not,  properly  speaking,  apostles,  and  that 
consequently,  they  had  not  received  the  same  inspiration 
as  the  other  sacred  writers  of  the  New  Testament. 
They  were  not  apostles,  it  is  true  ;  but  they  certainly 
were  prophets  ;  and  they  were  even  greater  than  the 
greatest  under  the  Old  Testament.** 

Without  here  insisting  on  the  ancient  traditionsft 
which  say  of  both,  that  they  were  of  the  number  of  the 
seventy  disciples  whom  Jesus  first  sent  out  to  preach 
through  Juden,  or  at  least  of  the  hundred  and  twenty  on 

•  Introd.  torn.  1,  p.  118,  119,  &c.  French  Edit, 
t  Rom.  i.  1  ;  Gal.  i.  1 ;  1  Cor.  i.  1,  &c.  ;  1  Pet.  i.  I ;  2  Pet.  i.  1. 
i  Issii.  hi.  1. ;  xl.  I,  et  iraasun.        §  Isai.  i.  1  ;  ii-  l,e/  alibi.         H  Jer.  i.  1,2. 
IF  Actsiv.  25:  xiii.  33;  Ileb.  i.  5;  iii.  7,  17;  v.  5:  jv.  3,7. 
*•  Luke  vii.  28.  30. 

tt  Eiiiphaii.,  IIa?res.,  51  nnd  others.— Orig.,  De  recta  in  Deuni  fide.— 
Doroih.  in  synopsi.— Procop.  Diacon.,  apud  BoUand.,  25  April. 


NEW   TESTAMENT   mOPHETICAL.  373 

whom  descended  flames  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  on  the  day 
of  Pentecost,  do  we  not  know  that  the  apostles  had  re- 
ceived the  power  of  conferring-,  by  the  laying  on  of 
hands,  miraculous  gifts  on  all  who  had  believed,  and 
that  they  used  this  power  in  all  the  count  lies  uud  in  all 
the  cities  whither  they  went?  And  since  Luke  and 
Mark  were  the  companions  in  labor,  that  Paul  and 
Peter  chose  from  among  so  many  other  prophets,  is  it 
not  sufSciently  manifest  that  these  two  apostles  must 
have  called  down  upon  such  associates,  the  gifts  Avhich 
they  elsewhere  bestowed  upon  so  many  other  believers? 
Do  we  not  see  Peter  and  John  first  going  down  to 
Samaria,  in  order  to  confer  these  gifts  on  the  believers 
of  that  city;  then  afterwards  Peter  corning  to  pour  them 
out  at  Ccesarea,  upon  all  the  pagans  who  had  heard  the 
word,  in  the  house  of  Cornelius  the  captain  1*  Do  we 
not  see  St.  Paul  bestowing  them  abundantly  upon  the 
faithful  of  Corinth,  upon  those  of  Ephesus,  and  upon 
those  of  Rome  ?t  Do  we  not  see  him,  before  employ- 
ing his  dear  son  Timothy  as  a  fellow  laborer,  bringing 
down  upon  him  spiritual  powers.;]:  And  is  it  not  suf- 
ficiently evident  that  Peter  must  have  done  as  much  for 
his  dear  son  Maik,^  as  Paul  for  his  companion  Luke?|| 
Silas,  ^vhom  Paul  had  taken  to  accompany  him,  (as  he 
took  Luke  also,  and  John,  surnamed  Mark.)  was  a  pro- 
phet in  Jerusalem.^  The  prophets  abounded  in  all 
these  primitive  churches.  Many,  we  see,  Avent  down 
from  Jerusalem  to  Antioch  ;**  there  were  a  great  num- 
ber of  them  at  Corinth  ;tt  Judas  and  Silas  were  such 

*  Acts  viii.  15,  17 ;  x.  45. 

t  Acf:5  xix.  6,  7;  1  Cor.  xii.  23;  xiv. ;  Rom.  i.  11 ;  xv.  19,  20. 
{  1  Tim.  iv.  14 ;  2  Tim.  i.  6.  §  ]  Pet.  v.  13. 

I  Acts  xiii.  1 ;  xvi.  10;  xxvii.  1;  Rom.  xvi.  21  ;  Col.  iv.  14;  2  Tim.  iv.  11; 
Phil.  24  ;  2  Cnr.  viii.  18.  H  Aits  xv.  32. 

••Acts  xi.  27.  tt  1  Cor.  xiv.  31,  39. 

32 


374  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

in  Jerusalem  ;  Agabus  was  such  in  Judea ;  four  vir- 
gins, still  young,  daughters  of  Philip  the  evangelist, 
were  such  in  Csesarea  ;*  and  we  see  in  the  Church  of 
Antioch,  many  believers  who  Avere  prophets  and  teach- 
ers jt  among  others,  Barnabas  (the  first  companion  of 
Paul,)  Simeon,  Manahem,  Saul  of  Tarsus  himself,  and 
finally  that  Lucius  of  Cyrene,  who  is  supposed  to  be  the 
Lucius  whom  Paul  (in  his  epistle  to  the  Romans)  calls 
his  kinsman,!  and  whom  (in  his  epistle  to  the  Colos- 
sians)  he  names  huke  the  phi/siciati  .*§  in  a  word,  that 
St.  Luke,  whom  the  ancient  Fathers  have  indifferently 
named  Lucas,  Lucius,  and  Lucanus. 

It  becomes  then  sufficiently  evident,  from  the  facts, 
that  St.  Luke  and  St.  Mark  were  at  least  in  the  rank  of 
those  prophets  whom  the  Lord  had  raised  up  in  such 
great  numbers  in  all  the  churches  of  the  Jews  and  Gen- 
tiles ;  and  that  from  among  all  the  others,  they  were 
chosen  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  to  write,  with  the  apostles, 
three  of  the  sacred  books  of  the  New  Testament. 

But  still  further  (and  let  it  be  well  remarked,)  this 
prophetic  authority  of  St.  Mark  and  of  St.  Luke  is  very 
far  from  resting  on  mere  suppositions.  It  is  founded 
upon  the  very  testimony  of  the  apostles  of  Jesus  Christ. 
It  must  not  be  forgotten,  that  it  was  under  the  protracted 
government  of  those  men  of  God,  that  the  divine  canon 
of  the  Scriptures  of  the  New  Testament  was  collected 
and  transmitted  to  all  the  Churches.  By  a  remarkable 
effect  of  the  Providence  of  God,  the  life  of  the  greater 
part  of  the  apostles  was  extended  to  a  great  number  of 
years.  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul  edified  the  Church  of 
God  for  more  than  thirty-four  years  after  the  resurrec* 

*  Acta  xi.  28;  xxi.  9, 10.  t  Acts  xiii.  1,  2. 

J  Rom.  xvi.  21.  S  Col.  iv.  14. 


NEW   TESTAMENT   PROPHETICAL.  375 

tion  of  their  Master.  St.  John  continued  his  mini.stry, 
in  the  province  of  Asia,  in  the  heart  of  the  Roman  Em- 
pire, for  even  more  than  thirty  years  yet  after  their  death. 
The  book  of  Acts,  which  was  written  by  St.  Luke  after 
his  Gospel,*  had  been  already  long  circulated  among 
the  churches,  (I  mean  at  least  ten  years)  before  the  mar- 
tyrdom of  St.  Paul. 

Now  St.  Paul,  long  even  before  going  to  Rome,  had 
already  made  the  gospel  to  abound  from  Jerusalem  to 
Illyrium  ;t  the  apostles  Avere  in  continual  correspon- 
dence with  the  christians  of  every  country ;  they  were 
every  day  overwhelmed  b}'^  the  care  of  all  the  churches  | 
St.  Peter,  in  his  second  letter,  written  to  the  univer- 
sal Church  of  God,  spoke  to  them  already  of  all  the 
EPISTLES  of  St.  Paul,  as  incorporated  with  the  Old 
Testament.  And  for  more  than  half  a  century,  all  the 
christian  churches  were  formed  and  guided  under  the 
superintendence  of  those  men  of  God. 

It  is  then,  with  the  assent  and  under  the  prophetic 
government  of  those  apostles  commissioned  to  bind  and 
to  unbind,  and  to  be,  after  Christ,  the  twelve  founda- 
tions of  the  universal  Church,  that  the  canon  of  the 
Scriptures  was  formed  ;  and  that  the  new  people  of 
God  received  its  "  living  oracles,"  to  transmit  them  tous.^ 
And  it  is  thus  that  the  gospel  of  Luke,  that  of  Mark, 
and  the  book  of  the  Acts,  have  been  received  by  com- 
mon const  nt.  under  the  same  titles,  and  with  the  same 
submission  as  the  apostolic  books  of  Matthew,  of  Paul, 
of  Peter  and  of  John.  These  bocks  have  then  for  us 
the  s:mie  authority  as  all  the  others  ;  and  we  are  called  to 
receive  them  equally,  "  not  as  the  word  of  men,  but,  as 

*  Acts  i.  1.  t  Rom.  xv.  19. 

J  2  Cor.  xi.  28.  §  Acts  vii.  38;  Rom.  iii.  2. 


376  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

they  are  in  truth,  the  word  of  God,  which  effectually 
works  in  all  those  that  believe."* 

We  trust  that  these  reflectfons  will  suffice  to  show 
how  unfounded  is  the  distinction,  wiiich  Michaelisf 
and  other  German  writers  have  pretended  to  establish, 
in  regard  to  inspiration,  between  these  two  Evangelists 
and  the  other  writers  of  the  New  Testament.  It  even 
appears  to  us,  that  it  is  for  the  very  purpose  of  prevent- 
ing any  such  supposition,  that  Luke  has  taken  pains  to 
place  at  the  head  of  his  Gospel,  the  four  verses  vrhich 
constitute  its  preface.  In  fact,  you  there  see  him  placing 
the  certainty  and  divinity  of  his  history  in  strong  con- 
trast with  the  uncertainty  and  human  character  of  the 
narrations  which  a  great  7iumher  of  'persons  (nolkoL) 
had  undertaken  to.  compose  [ins'/BlQrjaaf  OLiuia^uadai^) 
upon  the  evangelical  facts,  facts  (adds  he)  rendered 
perfectly  certain  among  us,  that  is  to  say,  among  the 
Apostles  and  Prophets  of  the  New  Testament  (  imp  n^n- 
h]go(f)oorjfitt'b)v  ev  riulv  TXQay^iaxMv  :)  the  original  word 
signifying  the  greatest  degree  of  certainty  ;  as  may  be 
seen. I  It  seemed  good  also^  adds  St.  Luke,  having 
had  perfect  understanding  of  all  things^  from  the  very 
first,  (from  on  high)  to  write  unto  thee  in  order. ^ 

St.  Luke  had  obtained  this  knowledge  from  above; 
that  is,  by  "  the  wisdom  which  cometh  from  on  high 
and  which  had  been  given  to  him."  It  is  very  true 
that  this  last  expression  in  this  passage,  is  ordinarily 
understood  to  mean  from  the  begiyming.  and  as  if,  in- 

*  1  Thes.  ii  13.  T  Introd.  tome  i  p.  112  to  129,  ed.  Eng. 

J  Rom.  iv.  21  ;  xiv.  5  ;  2 1  im.  iv.  5,  17. 

§  n.i/J«>f'jXou0)7f'5r(.— Thus  Demosthenes,  de  Corona,!.  53:  ITaja^foAovfliy. 
KOii  rus  irpjiyjutaiv  dr:^  tlpx^li- — Theophrast.,  Char.  Proem.,  4;  "Zov  6i  irap- 
aKoXov^TianX  Koi  ii&naai,  ti  upOio;  Xiyu). — Joseplius,  in  the  tinsr  lines  of  his 
book  against  Appion,  opposes  lliis  same  word,  tov  7TapaKo\ovQr\K6Ta  (dili- 
genter  assecntum,)  to  T(7t  KvvdavopcvM  {seUcitaiUi  ab  aliis.) 


NEW   TESTAMENT   PROPHETICAL.  377 

Stead  of  the  word  ^boidfv  [from  on  high,)  we  had  the 
same  word  «n'  uQ/ri;  (^from  ike  beginning.)  which  is  in 
the  spcond  verse.  But  it  has  appeared  to  us  that  the 
opinion  of  Erasmus,  of  Gomar,  of  Henry,  or  Lightfoot, 
and  of  other  comnipntntors,  should  be  preferred  as  more 
natural,  and  that  we  must  here  take  the  word  ('notd-v  in 
the  same  sense  in  which  St.  John  and  St.  James  have 
employed  it,  where  they  have  said  :  "  Every  good  gift 
Cometh  from  above  ;*  thou  shouldst  have  no  power 
over  me,  except  it  were  given  thee  from  on  high  :t  ex- 
cept a  man  be  bo;n  again  {from  on  high,)  he  cannot 
see  the  kingdom  of  God  ;J  the  wisdom  which  cometh 
frojri.  above  is  first  pure."^ 

The  prophet  f^uke  had  then  obtained  from  on  high, 
an  exact  knowledge  of  all  things  which  Jesus  began 
both  to  do  and  to  teach,  until  the  day  he  was  taken  up. 

At  the  same  time,  whatever  rendering  of  these  words 
is  preferred,  it  is  by  other  arguments  that  we  have 
shewed  how  Luke  and  Mark  were  prophets  ;  and  how 
their  writings,  transmitted  to  the  church  by  the  anthor- 
ity  of  the  Aposlhs,  are  themselves  incorporated  with 
those  of  the  Apostles,  as  well  as  with  all  the  other  pro- 
phetic books  of  the  eternal  word  of  God. 

Observe  then  precisely  how  far  our  argument  has 
conducted  us,  and  what  the  very  authority  of  the  Holy 
Scriptures  has  led  us  to  recognise.  It  is  fi.st ;  that  the 
Theopneusty  of  the  words  of  the  prophets  was  entire; 
that  the  Holy  Spirit  spake  by  them,  and  that  the  word 
of  the  Lord  was  upon  their  tongue.  It  is  again 
— that  all  that  has  been  written  in  the  Bible,  having 
been  written  by  prophecy,  all  the  sacred   books   are 

*  James  i.  17.  t  John  xix.  11. 

J  John  iii.  3.  §  James  iii.  15—17. 

32* 


378  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

Holy  Letters  {Jeqn  youuuaTu)  written  prophecies  [ngo- 
q)TjT£ia  j'^wgr^c,)  and  Scriptures  divinely  inspired  [yqa- 
(ptti  dtonvsvaiui.)     Every  thing  in  it  then  is  of  God. 

In  the  meantime,  let  it  be  remembered  (we  wish  to 
repeat  it  once  more  here,  although  we  have  already 
had  more  than  one  occasion  to  say  it,)  that  it  is  not 
necessary  to  suppose,  among  the  prophets  of  the  Old  or 
of  the  New  Testament,  a  state  of  excitement  and  of  en- 
thusiasm which  carried  them  out  of  themselves:  we 
must,  on  the  contrary,  guard  against  such  a  thought. 
The  ancient  church  attached  so  great  importance  to 
this  principle,  that,  under  the  reign  of  the  Emperor 
Commodus,  according  to  Eusebius,  Miltiades,  the  illus- 
trious author  of  a  christian  Apology,  '•  composed  a  book 
expressly  to  establish"  against  Montanus  and  the  false 
prophets  of  Phrygia,  "  that  the  true  prophets  ought  to 
be  masters  of  themselves,  and  ought  not  to  speak  in 
ecstacyy*  The  power  of  God  was  exercised  upon 
them,  without  taking  them  entirely  out  of  their  ordinary 
state.  "  The  spirits  of  the  prophets,"  says  St.  Paul, 
"  are  subject  to  the  prophets. "f  Their  intellectual 
faculties  were  then  directed,  and  not  suspended.  They 
knew,  they  felt,  they  willed,  thej'-  remembered,  they 
comprehended,  they  approved.  They  could  say:  "it 
hath  seemed  to  me  good  to  write ;"  and  as  the  apostles, 
"  it  hath  seemed  good  to  us  and  to  the  Holy  Spirit  to 
write."!  ^"^  ^^"^  '^^  words  were  given  to  them  as 
well  as  the  thoughts  ;  for,  after  all,  words  are  but  se- 

*  Hist.  Eccl.,lib.  iv.  chap.  17. — 'Ev  w  aKoSciKwa-iireplrotiiriSeu  IT/oo^^t^v 
iv  £»c<rTuo-£i  AaXtri/.— See  too  Niceph.,  lib.  iv.  c.  24  —See  the  same  princi- 
ples inTerluUian  (ag.tinst  Marcion,  lih.  iv.  chap.  22;)  in  Epiphanius  (Adv. 
haereses,  lib.  li.  ha;res.,  48,  c.  3 ;)  in  .lerome  (Proemium  in  Nahum  ;)  ia 
Basil  the  Great  (Commentary  on  Isa.  proem..  5.) 

I  1  Cor.  xiv.  32.  +  Luke  i.  3 ;  Acts  xv.  28. 


NEW    TESTAMENT    PROPHETICAL.  379 

cond  thoughts,  which  relate  to  the  language,  and  which 
make  from  it  st^lect  expressions.*  It  is  no  easier  and 
no  more  difficult  to  explain  the  gift  of  the  one  than  that 
of  the  others. 

Yet  there  is  something  in  reference  to  the  Theop- 
neusty,  in  the  Holy  Scriptures,  which  to  us  is  still  more 
impressive,  if  it  be  possible,  than  all  the  deciaraiioiis  of 
the  apostles  and  of  Jesus  Christ  himself;  it  is  ihvlc  ex- 
amples. 

SECTION  V. 

The  Examples  of  ike  Apostles  and  of  their  Masters  attest  that,  for 
them,  all  the  words  of  the  Holy  Books  are  given  by  God. 

Let  it  first  be  remembered  what  use  the  apostles  them- 
selves make  of  the  word  of  God,  and  in  what  terms  ihey 
quote  it.  See  how  then,  they  not  only  content  them- 
selves with  saying  :  "  God  says  ;]  the  Holy  Spirit  has 
said ;%  God  says  by  such  a  piophet;''^  but  see  also 
when  they  quote  it,  how  they  esteem  its  least  parts  ; 
with  what  respect  they  speak  of  it ;  with  what  attention 

*  We  have  translated  o?ir  author  here  literally,  because  he  has  not  ex- 
pressed himself  clearly ;  and  it  is  the  only  sentence  of  his  honk  which  has 
appeared  to  us  obscure.  If  we  may  intrude  our  own  explaiiniion,  we 
would  state  that  we  think  his  views  might  be  thus  expressed;  -'The 
words  were  given  as  well  as  the  ihouglits;  for.  after  all,  the  words, 
that  is  the  enunciation  of  the  thonghis,  is  also  the  product  of  a  second 
effort  of  the  mind  after  it  has  conceived  the  thought ;  an  eff.u-t  which  re- 
lates to  the  language,  and  which  consists  in  choosing  from  it  appropriate 
expres.<ions."  A  friend  has  furnished  us  this  illustration  of  the  author's 
idea.  Imagine  these  holy  men  commanded  toc<uiteuiplatea  l)uiltlin'.',  and 
to  make  an  exact  representation  (>f  it  to  men  ;  and  at  the  same  time,  jilatea 
engraved  with  a  perfect  image  of  it  were  given  them  ;  their  sole  duty  be- 
ing to  paint  them.  That  is  plenary  inspiration.  The huilJing  of  ihe  house 
was  the  first  effort  of  the  architect,  and  the  n-prtiseii^a  im.  of  it  was  the 
second  effort  of  the  same  mind.  None  l»ut  Ood  could  construct  the  build- 
ing ;  none  but  he  could  copy  it  infallibly.    And  he  has  done  it  —  7V«n». 

tEph.  iv.  8;  Heb.  i.  8. 

t  Acts  xxviii.  25 ;  Heb.  iii.  7  ;  x.  15,  and  elsewhere.  §  Rom.  ix.  25. 


380  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

they  consider  each  of  its  words  ;  with  what  religious 
assurance  they  often  insist  on  one  single  word,  to  deduce 
from  it  the  most  serious  consequences  and  the  most  fun- 
dam  rntal  doctrines. 

Ft)r  ourselves,  we  must  avow,  nothing  impresses  us 
so  strongly  as  this  consideration:  nothing  has  produced 
in  oin-  soul  so  intimate  and  so  powerful  a  confidence  in 
the  entire  theopneusty  of  the  Scriptures. 

The  preceding  reasonings  and  the  testimonies  appear 
to  us  sufficient  to  carry  conviction  to  all  attentive  minds  ; 
but  we  fe.el  that,  if  we  had  a  personal  necr'ssity  of  con- 
firming our  fdith  upon  this  tiuih.  we  should  not  go  so 
far  to  seek  our  reasons  ;  it  would  be  S'jffici^  nt  for  us  to 
inquire,  how  the  apostles  of  God  esteemed  the  Huly 
Scriptures.  Was  it,  in  their  oj)inion,  inspired  ;  was  its 
language  inspired  ?  What,  for  examph*,  did  Saint  Paul 
think  of  it?  For  we  have  no  pretensions  to  he  more 
enlii-htened  theoloaians  tlian  those  twelve  men.  We 
abide  by  the  dogmatics  of  St.  Peter,  and  the  exegesis  of 
St.  Paul;  and  of  all  the  systems  on  tlie  inspirntion  of 
the  Scriptures,  it  is  theirs  which  we  are  determined  to 
prefer. 

Hear  the  apostle  Paul,  when  he  quotes  them,  and  when 
he  comments  on  them.  He  tlien  discusses  tin  ir  smallest 
expressions.  Often,  in  order  to  draw  fiom  them  the 
most  important  conclusions,  he  malces  use  of  arguments 
which  would  be  treated  as  puerihi  or  Jihsurd,  if  we  liad 
employed  them  before  the  doctors  of  the  Socini  ai  school. 
Such  a  respect  for  the  wonis  of  the  te.\t.  if  we  should  be 
guilty  of  it,  would  send  us  biick  to  the  XVIth  century, 
to  its  rude  orthodoxy,  to  its  superanmiated  theology. 
Remark  with  what  reverence  the  apostle  pauses  at  the 
least  expression  j   with   what  confident   expectation  of 


EXAMFLE   OF   CHRIST  AND   THE   APOSTLES.  381 

the  Church's  submission,  he  there  points  out  the  em- 
ployment of  such  a  word  in  preference  to  any  other  ; 
with  what  investigation  an  J  cordiality  he  presses  out 
each  word  of  it  between  his  hands,  even  to  the  last  drop. 

Out  of  the  muhitude  of  examples  which  we  might 
produce,  let  us  for  brevity's  sake,  confine  ourselvts  to 
the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews. 

See  in  chapter  ii.  v.  8.  how.  after  having  quoted  these 
words:  "  Thou  hast  put  all  things  under  his  fett,"  the 
sacred  author  reasons  from  the  authority  of  the  word  all. 

See,  in  the  11th  verse,  how,  in  quoting  the  xxii. 
Psalm,  he  reasons  from  this  word,  my  brethren^  to  de- 
rive from  it  the  human  nature  which  the  Son  of  God 
was  to  assume. 

See,  in  chapter  xii.  27,  how,  in  quoting  the  prophet 
Haggai,  he  reasons  from  the  employment  of  this  word; 
once.     "  Yet  once." 

See,  in  verses  5,  6,  7,  8  and  9,  with  what  expansion 
he  reasons  from  these  words,  '•  my  son^'  from  i\\i'  3d 
chap,  of  Proverbs :  '■  My  son,  despise  not  the  chastening 
of  the  Lord." 

See,  in  chap.  x.  how,  in  citing  the  xl.  Psalm,  he  rea- 
sons from  the  words,  "  Lo !  I  come,"  opposed  lo  the 
words,  "  Thou  wouldest  not." 

See,  in  chap.  viii.  v.  8  to  13,  how,  in  quoting  Jeremiah 
xxxi.  31,  he  argues  from  the  word  new. 

See,  in  chapter  iii.  v.  7  to  19,  and  iv.  1  to  11.  'vith 
what  earnestness,  in  quoting  the  xcvth  Psalm,  h<'  a,  i^ues 
from  the  word  "  to-day,'^  fiom  the  words  "  I h  ire  siiorn" 
and  especially  from  the  woids  ••  viy  rest"  i\\u:<[ri\\:  l  by 
this  other  word  of  (jtentsis :  '-And  God  res/c.'  the 
seventh  day." 

See,  in  v.  2,  3,  4,  5,  and  6,  how  he  reason.-s  from 


382  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

these  words  "  servant''^  and  "  house^^  borrowed  from 
Numbers  :  "  My  servant  Moses,  who  is  faithful  in  all 
my  house." 

See,  above  all,  in  chapters  vi.  and  vii.  the  use  Avhich 
he  niaices  successively  of  all  the  words  of  the  cxth 
Psalm;  observe  how  he  takes  up  each  expression,  one 
after  ih("  other,  to  deduce  from  it  the  highest  doctrines: 
"The  Lord  hath  sworn;"  --he  hath  sworn  by  him- 
self;" "thou  art  a  priest;"  "thou  art  a  priest  forever;" 
"thou  art  a  priest  after  the  order  of  Melchizedec  ;" 
"  of  Mtlchizedec  king  of  Zedec  ;"  "  and  of  Mt  Ichizedec 
king  of  S:iletii."  The  exposition  of  the  doctrines  con- 
tained in  each  one  of  these  words,  fills  three  chapters, 
the  5th,  6th,  and  7th. 

But  I  stop  here.  Is  it  possible  not  to  conclude  from 
such  examples,  that,  for  the  holy  apostle  Paul,  the  Scrip- 
tures were  inspired  of  God,  even  to  the  least  important 
expressions?  L^t  each  of  us  then  rank  himself  in  the 
school  of  this  man,  "  to  whom  was  given  the  under- 
standino-  of  the  mystery  of  Christ  by  the  Spirit  of  God, 
as  to  a  holy  apostle  and  prophet.*  We  must,  of  neces- 
sity, either  hold  him  for  an  enthusiast,  and  reject  in  his 
person  the  testimony  of  the  holy  Bible  ;  or  receive,  with 
him,  the  precious  and  fruitful  doctiine  of  the  plenary  in- 
spiration of  the  Scriptures. 

O;  ye,  who  shall  read  these  lines,  in  what  school 
will  ye  then  sit  down?  in  that  of  the  apostles,  or  in  that 
of  the  doctors  of  our  age?  "  If  any  mm  shall  take  away 
from  the  woids  of  this  book  (1  testify,  says  St.  John,) 
God  siiall  take  away  his  part  out  of  ihe  book  of  life,  and 
out  of  the  holy  city,  and  from  the  things  which  are 

*  Eph.  iii.  4,  5. 


EXAMPLE   OF   CHRIST   AND   THE   APOSTLES.  383 

written  in  this  book."  "  And,  if  (says  St.  Paul)  any 
man  preach  any  other  Gospel,  let  him  be  accursed."* 

But  again,  let  us  leave  the  apostles,  (prophets  as  they 
were,  sent  of  God  to  establish  his  kingdom,  pillars  of 
the  Church,  mouths  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  ambassadors  of 
Jesus  Christ ;)  let  us  leave  them,  for  the  moment,  as  if 
they  were  still  too  much  enveloped  in  their  Jewish  tradi- 
tions, and  in  their  rustic  prejudices;  let  us  go  to  the 
Master.  Let  us  ask  him  how  he  esteemed  the  Scrip- 
tures. This  is  the  great  question.  The  testimonies 
which  we  have  just  cited,  are  peremptory,  without 
doubt ;  and  the  doctrine  of  a  full  and  entire  Theopneusty 
is  as  clearly  taught  in  the  Scriptures,  as  perhaps  the 
resurrection  of  the  dead  ;  that  alone  is  enough  for  us  ; 
but,  notwithstanding,  we  will  still  avow  it,  here  is  an 
argument  which  renders  all  others  superfluous  to  us: — 
How  did  Jesus  Christ  quote  the  Bible?  what  did  he 
think  of  the  letter  of  the  Scriptures?  what  use  did  he 
make  of  it,  he  who  is  its  object  and  inspirer,  its  begin- 
ning and  its  end,  its  first  and  its  last — he,  whose  Holy 
Spirit,  says  St.  Peter,  animated  all  the  prophets  of  the 
Old  Testament! — he,  who  was  in  heaven  in  the  bosom 
of  the  Father,  at  the  same  time  that  he  was  seen  here 
below,  conversing  among  us,  and  preaching  the  Gospel 
to  the  poor?  1  am  asked,  what  do  you  think  of  the 
Holy  Scriptures?  I  reply,  what  did  my  Master  think 
of  them?  how  did  he  quote  them?  v^^hat  use  did  he 
make  of  them  ?  what  were  their  least  parts  to  hiin  '} 

Oh!  tell  them  thyself,  Eternal  Wisdom,  uncreated 
Word,  Judge  of  judges  !  and  whilst  we  are  going  to  re- 
peat to  them  here  the  declarations  of  thy  mouth,  show 
them  that  majesty  in  which  the  Scriptures  appeared  to 

•  Rev.  xxii.  18;  Gal.  i.  8,  10.  1 1  Pet.  ii.  U. 


384  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

thee,  that  perfection  ^Yhich  thou  didst  recognise  in  them, 
that  permanence,  above  all,  which  thou  hast  assigned  to 
their  least  iota,  and  which  shall  make  them  survive 
even  the  universe,  after  the  heavens  and  the  earth  shall 
have  passed  away  ! 

We  do  not  hesitate  to  say  it :  when  we  hear  the  Son 
of  God  quote  the  Scriptures,  every  thing-  is  said  for  us 
upon  their  theopneusty  ;  we  have  no  need  of  any  other 
testimony.  All  the  declarations  of  the  Bible  are  equally 
divine,  without  doubt ;  but  this  example  of  the  Savior 
of  the  world  has  told  us  all  in  a  moment.  This  proof 
requires  no  protracted  nor  profound  research  :  the  hand 
of  a  little  child  seizes  it  as  powerfully  as  that  of  a  man 
of  learning.  If  any  doubt  should  then  assail  your  soul, 
let  it  turn  to  the  Lord  of  lords  ;  let  it  see  him  kneeling 
before  the  Scriptures! 

Follow  Jesus,  in  the  days  of  his  flesh.  With  what 
grave  and  tender  respect  he  constantly  holds  in  his  hands 
the  "  volume  of  the  book,"  to  quote  all  its  parts,  and  to 
point  out  its  least  verses. 

See  how  a  word,  a  single  word,  whether  of  a  song, 
or  of  a  historical  book,  has  for  him  the  authority  of  a 
law.  Observe  with  what  confident  submission  he  re- 
ceives all  the  Scriplures^  without  even  disputing  their 
sacred  canon  ;  because  he  knows  that  "  salvation  is  of 
the  Jews,"  and  that,  under  the  infallible  providence  of 
God,  "  the  oracles  of  God  were  committed  to  thf-m." 
What  do  I  say  ;  that  he  receives  them  ?  from  his  cradle 
to  his  tomb,  and  from  his  resurrection  from  the  tomb 
to  his  disappearance  in  the  clouds,  what  does  he  carry 
every  where  with  him  ;  in  the  desert,  in  the  temple,  in 
the  synagogue?  What  does  he  still  quote,  in  his  re- 
surrection-body, at  the  moment  whtn   already  the  hca- 


EXAMPLE    OF    CHRIST    AND    THE    APOSTLES.  385 

vens  are  about  to  exclaim  ;  '•  Lift  up  your  heads,  ye 
everlasting-  gates,  and  let  the  King  of  glory  enter  ?"  It 
is  the  Bible  ;  it  is  ever  the  Bible  ;  it  is  Moses,  the 
Psalms,  and  the  Prophets  :  he  quotes  them,  he  explains 
them  ;  but  how  ?  it  is  verse  by  verse  ;  it  is  word  after 
word  ! 

In  what  a  frightful  and  painful  contrast,  after  such  a 
spectacle,  do  those  mi?guided  men  present  themselves  to 
us,  who,  in  our  day,  dare  to  judge,  to  contradict,  and  to 
try  to  mutilate  the  Scriptures  ! 

We  tremble,  when  we  have  followed  with  our  eyes 
the  Son  of  Man,  commanding  the  elements,  stilling  the 
tempest,  and  bursting  the  sepulchre,  whilst  filled  with 
so  profound  a  respect  for  the  sacred  volume,  he  declared 
that  he  was  to  return  one  day  to  judge,  from  this  book, 
the  living  and  the  dead;  we  tremble,  and  our  heart 
bleeds,  when  afterwards  crossing  the  threshold  of  a  ra- 
tionalist academy,  we  there  see,  seated  in  his  professoral 
chair,  a  poor  mortal,  a  learned,  miserable  sinner,  a  res- 
ponsible soul,  handling,  without  reverence,  the  word  of 
his  God ;  when  we  follow  him  accomplishing  this 
wretched  task  before  young  men  eager  for  instruction, 
as  future  guides  of  an  entire  people,  capable  of  so  much 
good,  if  you  lead  them  to  the  high  places  of  faith,  and 
of  so  much  evil,  if  you  train  them  to  the  contempt  of 
those  Scriptures  which  they  are  one  day  to  preach? 
With  what  peremptory  decision  they  exhibit  the  phan- 
tasmagoria of  their  hypotheses  ;  they  retrench,  they 
add,  they  commend,  they  condemn  ;  they  pity  the  sim- 
plicity, w^iich,  reading  the  Bible  as  Jesus  Christ  reads 
it,  attaches  itself,  like  him,  to  all  the  words,  and  can 
find  no  error  in  the  word  of  God ;  they  decide  what  in- 
terpolations or  what  retrenchments,  (which  Jesus  Christ 


386  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

never  suspected,)  the  holy  Scriptures  must  have  under- 
gone;  they  purify  the  chapters  which  they  have  not 
understood;  they  point  out  mistakes  in  them,  reasonings 
badly  conducted  or  badly  concluded,  prejudices,  impru- 
dences, vulgar  errors  ! 

God  forgive  me  for  being  obliged  to  write  the  words 
of  this  frightful  dilemma  ;  (but  the  alternative  is  inevi- 
table !)  Either  Jesus  Christ  exaggerated  and  reasoned 
badly,  when  he  thus  quoted  the  Scriptures,  or  these  im- 
prudent and  unhappy  men,  ignoranlly  blaspheme  their 
majesty.  It  pains  us  to  write  these  lines.  God  is  our 
witness  that  we  would  willingly  have  withheld  them, 
and  then  have  blotted  them  out ;  but,  w^e  hesitate  not  to 
say  with  a  profound  feeling,  it  is  in  obedience,  it  is  in 
charity,  that  they  have  been  written.  Alas  !  in  a  few 
years  these  professors  and  their  pupils  will  be  sleeping 
in  the  same  tomb  ;  they  must  wither  like  the  grass  ; 
but  then  not  a  tittle  of  ihis  divine  book  shall  have 
passed  away ;  and  as  surely  as  the  Bible  is  truth,  and 
as  it  has  changed  the  face  of  the  world,  so  surely  shall 
we  see  the  Son  of  Man  returning  upon  the  clouds  of 
Heaven,  and  "judging  by  this  eternal  word,  the  secret 
thoughts  of  men."* 

"  All  flesh  is  grass,  and  all  the  glory  of  man  is  as 
the  flower  of  grass  :  the  grass  withereth,  and  the  flower 
thereof  fadeth  away  ;  but  the  word  of  God  abideth  for 
ever ;  and  this  is  the  word  which  is  preached  unto  us  ;" 
it  is  this  word  which  shall  judge  us.  Now  then,  we 
are  about  to  finish  our  proof  in  reviewing,  under  this 
aspect,  the  ministry  of  Jesus  Christ.  Let  us  follow  him 
from  the  age  of  twelve  years  to  his  descent  into  the 
tomb,  or  rather  to  his  disappearance  in  the  clouds  ;  and, 

•  Rom.  ii.  16;  John  xii.  43;  Matt.  x.w.  31. 


EXAMPLE    OF    CHRIST   AND    THE   APOSTLES.  387 

in  all  the  course  of  this  incomparable  career,  let  us  see 
what  the  Scriptures  were  for  Hitn,  who,  "  upholdelh  all 
things  by  the  word  of  his  power." 

See  him  first,  at  the  age  of  twelve  years.  He  has 
grown,  as  a  human  child,  in  wisdom  and  in  stature  ;  he 
is  in  the  midst  of  the  doctors,  in  the  temple  of  Jerusa- 
lem ;  he  ravishes,  by  his  answers  those  who  hear  him; 
for  "he  knew,  said  one,  the  Scriptures  without  having 
studied  them."* 

See  him,  when  he  has  commenced  his  ministry  ;  be- 
hold him  filled  with  the  Holy  Ghost ;  he  is  led  to  the 
desert,  there  to  sustain,  like  the  first  Adam  in  Eden,  a 
mysterious  combat  with  the  powers  of  darkness.  The 
impure  spirit  dares  attempt  to  oveithrow  him  ;  but  how 
shall  the  Son  of  God  repel  him  ;  he  who  has  come  to 
destroy  the  works  of  Satan  ?  Only  by  the  Bible.  His 
sole  weapon,  in  those  encounters,  the  sword  of  the  Spi- 
rit, in  his  divine  hands,  shall  be  the  Bible.  He  shall 
quote,  three  times,  the  book  of  Deuteronomy  f  At 
each  new  temptation,  he,  the  Word  made  fl*  sh,  shall 
defend  himself  by  a  sentence  of  the  orach  s  of  God, 
and  even  by  a  sentence  whose  entire  force  lies  in  the 
employment  of  a  single  word,  or  of  two  words,  (aoTw 
/u6>(i>)  bread  alone  ; — then  of  these  woids:  Tlmv,  s/iali 
not  (emjd  the  Lord  (o"x  tx7Tf/^uaf<g  7vi'^/oi) — then 
fin:illv,  of  these  two  words  :  [Otui^  nuozxvrr^oe'g)  ihou 
shall  worship  God. 

What  an  example  for  us  !  All  his  answer,  all  his 
deft  nee,  is  this :  '••  It  is  written  ;"  "  get  thee  behind  me, 
Salan,  for  it  is  written  ; ' — and  as  soon  as  this  terrible 
and  mysterious  combat  is  closed,  angels  draw  nigh  to 
serve  him. 

•  John  vii.  13, 1-5.  t  Deut.  viii.  3;  vi.  13  ;  x.  20;  Matt.  iv.  1-lL 


388  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

But,  observe,  again,  that  such  is  for  the  Son  of  Man, 
the  au.hority  of  each  word  of  the  Scriptures,  that  the 
foul  spirit  hiinself,  that  being  so  mighty  in  wickedness, 
who  knows  what  all  the  words  of  the  Bible  are  in  his 
eyes,  does  not  innagine  a  surer  means  of  conquering  his 
will,  than  citing  to  him  (but  at  the  same  time  distort- 
ing it)  a  verse  of  the  xci.  Psalm  ;  and  immediately 
Jesus  Christ,  to  confound  him,  is  content  to  reply  again  : 
"  It  is  written." 

See  how  his  sacerdotal  ministry  commenced  ;  by  the 
employment  of  the  Scriptures.  And  see  how  his  pro- 
phetic ministry  is  opened,  immediately  afterwards  ;  by 
the  en)ployment  of  the  Scriptures. 

Let  us  again  follow  him,  as  engaged  in  his  work,  he 
goes  from  place  to  place,  to  do  good  ;  always  enlisting 
in  his  poverty  his  creating  power,  for  imparting  comfort 
to  others,  never  to  himself  He  speaks,  and  it  is  done  ; 
he  casts  out  devils  ;  he  calms  the  tempests  ;  he  awakens 
the  dead.  But,  in  the  midst  of  all  these  grandeurs,  see 
how  he  estimates  the  Scriptures.  The  word  is  ever 
with  him.  He  bears  it  with  respect,  not  in  his  hands, 
(he  knows  it  thoroughly.)  but  in  his  memory  and  in  his 
incomparable  heart.  Behold  him,  when  he  speaks  of 
it.  When  he  unrols  the  sacred  volume,  it  is  as  if  he 
were  opening  the  window  of  heaven,  to  make  us  hear 
the  voice  of  Jehovah.  With  what  reverence,  with  what 
submission  he  expounds  them,  he  comments  on  them,  he 
quotes  them  word  after  word!  Behold  his  entire  em- 
ployment ;  to  heal,  and  to  preach  the  Scriptures  ;  as 
afterward,  to  die,  and  to  accomplish  the  Scriptures ! 

Behold  him  come, '•  as  he  was  wont,"  into  a  syna- 
gogue, on  a  Sabbath  day  ;  '•  for  he  taught  in  their  con- 


EXAMPLE   OF   CHRIST   AND    THE    APOSTLES.  389 

gregations,"  it  is  said*  He  enters  that  of  Nazareth. 
What  will  he  do  there ;  he,  "  the  Eternal  Wisdom,  pos- 
sessed by  Jehovah  in  the  beginning  of  his  way,  before 
his  works  of  old,  brought  forth  before  the  mountains 
were  settled,  before  the  hills  ?t  He  shall  rise  to  take 
the  Bible  ;  he  shall  open  at  Isaiah  ;  he  shall  there  read 
a  few  sentences ;  then,  having  closed  the  book,  he  shall 
sit  dovm  ;  and,  as  all  eyes  are  fixed  on  him,  he  shall 
say :  "  This  day,  is  this  Scripture  fulfilled  in  your 
hearing."! 

See  him,  journeying  through  Galilee.  What  does 
he  there  ?  He  is  still  holding  in  his  hands,  the  volume 
of  the  book  ;  and  he  is  explaining  it  line  after  line,  word 
after  word  ;  he  holds  up  its  most  important  expressions 
for  our  respect,  as  he  would  the  law  of  "the  Ten  Com- 
mandments, pronounced  on  Sinai." 

See  him  again  in  Jerusalem,  before  the  poor  of  Beth- 
esda  ;  what  is  he  urging  on  the  people  ?  "  Search  the 
Scriptures  !"^ 

See  him  in  the  holy  place,  in  the  midst  of  which  he 
had  dared  to  exclaim,  "  There  is  one  here  greater  than 
the  holy  place."  |i  Follow  him  before  the  Sadducees 
and  Pharisees,  whilst  he  alternately  reproves  them  both 
in  these  words ;  '•  It  is  written  ;"  as  he  had  done  to 
Satan. 

Hear  him  replying  to  the  Sadducees  who  denied  the 
resurrection  of  the  body.  How  does  he  refute  them  ? 
By  A  SINGLE  WORD  ffom  a  riiSTORiOAr.  passage  of  the 
Bible  ;  by  a  single  verb  in  the  present  tense,  instead  of 
the  same  verb  in  the  past  tense.  "  Ye  err,"  said  he  to 
ihem,  '-NOT  KNOWING  THE  SCRIPTURES.     Havc  ye  not 

•  Luke  iv.  15, 16.  t  Prov.  viii.  22,  25. 

X  Luke  iv.  21  $  John  v.  36.  II  Matt.  ii.  6. 

33* 


390  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

read  what  God  has  declared  to  you,  saying :  I  am  the 
God  of  Abraham?"  Thus  he  proved  to  them  the  doc- 
trine of  the  resurrection.  God,  upon  Mount  Sinai,  four 
hundred  years  after  the  death  of  Abraham,  said  to  Moses  ; 
not,  '•  [  was,"  but  "  I  am  the  God  of  Abraham  ;  I  am  so 
now,  )2m;::^  '^nb^S;  ^DTDJ^  which  the  Holy  Spirit 
renders  :  "Ejio  flui  6  &ed;  ylSqaau.  There  is  then  a 
resurrection  ;  for  God  is  not  the  God  of  some  handful 
of  dust,  the  God  of  the  dead,  the  God  of  non-entity: 
he  is  the  God  of  the  living.  '•  These  men  are  then 
living  with  God."* 

See  him  afterwards  before  the  Pharisees.  It  is  still 
Dy  the  letter  of  the  word  that  he  confounds  them. 

Some  of  them  had  already  followed  him  to  the  bor- 
ders of  Judea,  beyond  Jordan,  and  had  come  to  question 
him  on  the  subject  of  marriage  and  divorce.  What 
might  Jesus  Christ  have  done  ?  He  could  surely  have 
replied  from  his  own  authority,  and  have  given  his  own 
laws.  Is  he  not  the  King  of  kings  and  Lord  of  lords  ? 
But  no  ;  it  is  to  the  Bible  he  again  appeals,  to  found 
here  a  doctrine  ;  it  is  to  the  simple  words,  taken  from 
an  entirely  historical  passage  of  Genesis  :  "  Have  ye 
NOT  RKAD,  that  He  who  made  them  from  the  beginning, 
made  them  male  and  female ;  so  that  they  are  no  more 
twain,  but  one  flesh  ?  V/hat  then  God  hath  joined  to- 
gether, let  not  man  put  asunder."! 

But  hear,  above  all,  whfn  in  the  temple,  he  would 
prove  to  other  Pharisees,  b}'  the  Scriptures,  the  divinity 
of  the  expected  Messiah.  He  again  insisted  here,  to  de- 
monstrate it,  upon  the  use  of  a  singlk  word,  which  he 
was  about  to  take  from  the  book  of  the  Psalms.  "  If 
the  Messiah,"  said  he  to  them,  "  is  the  Son  of  David, 

'  Matt,  xxii  31,  32.  t  Gen.  i.  27:  ii.  24  ;  Mutt.  xi.\.  4,  5,  6, 


EXAMPLE    OF    CHRIST   AND    THE    APOSTLES.  391 

how  did  David,  by  the  Spirit,  call  him  Lord?  when 
he  says,  (in  Ps.  ex.  ;)  the  Lord  said  unto  my  Lord,  Sit 
thou  at  my  rioht  hand  ?  If  then  David  calls  him  Lord, 
how  is  he  his  Son  ?"* 

Wiiy  was  there  not  some  one  of  the  Pharisees  sug- 
gesting the  ready  reply  which  modern  times  have  fur- 
nished :  '•  What  !  do  you  prele7id  to  insist  on  a  single 
word,  and  more,  upon  a  term  borrowed  from  a  poetry 
eminently  lyrical,  in  ichich  the  royal  Psalmist  may^ 
without  injury,  have  cm'ployed  a  too  vii:id  conslrv ction^ 
exaggerated  expressions,  and  words  which  he  doubtless 
had  not  then  logically  weighed  in  his  mind,  before  cast- 
ing them  into  his  verse  ?  Would  you  follow  the  at  once 
fanatical  and  servile  method  of  a  minute  interpretation 
of  each  expression?  Would  you  adore  even  to  the  let- 
ter of  the  Scriptures  ?  Would  you  construct  an  entire 
doctrine  upon  a  word  .'*" 

Yes,  I  will,  replies  Jesus  Christ ;  yes,  I  will  support 
myself  upon  a  word;  because  this  word  is  of  God,  and 
because  with  one  word  he  created  the  light.  To  cut  all 
your  objections  short,  I  declare  to  you,  that  "it  is  by 
THE  Spirit,"  that  David  wrote  all  the  words  of  his 
Songs  ;  and  I  ask  you  how,  "  if  the  Messiah  is  his  Son, 
David,  BY  THE  Spirit,  can  call  him  his  Lord,  when  he 
says  :  the  Lord  said  to  my  Lord  ?" 

Students  of  the  word  of  God,  and  you  especially  who 
are  to  be  its  ministers,  and  who,  in  order  to  prepare  your- 
selves for  preaching  it,  wish  first  to  have  received  it  into 
a  good  and  honest  heart,  see  what  each  saying,  each 
word  of  the  book  of  God  was  for  our  Master.  Go, 
then,  and  do  likewise  ! 

But  still  farther.     Hear  him  again,  even  on  his  cross. 

•  Matt.  xxii.  43. 


392  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

He  was  there  pouring  out  his  soul  an  offering  for  sin ; 
all  his  bones  were  out  of  joint ;  he  poured  himself  out 
like  water ;  *his  heart  was  melted  like  wax  within  him  ; 
his  tongue  cleaved  to  the  roof  of  his  mouth  ;*  he  was 
about  rendering  up  his  spirit  to  his  Father.  But  what 
did  he  first  ?  He  would  gather  all  his  remaining 
strength,  to  repeat  a  psalm  which  the  Church  of  Israel 
had  sung  for  a  thousand  years  in  her  religious  festivals, 
and  which  spoke  successively  all  his  griefs  and  all  his 
prayers  :  "  Eli,  Eli,  lama  Sabachthaiii  /''  (M}''  God, 
my  God,  why  hast  thou  forsaken  me?)  He  did  yet 
more :  hear  him.  There  remained  yet  in  the  Scrip- 
tures one  unfulfilled  word  ;  they  must  yet  give  him 
vinegar  upon  that  cross  ;  the  Holy  Spirit  had  declared 
it  a  thousand  years  before,  in  the  Ixixth  Psalm.  '■'  After 
this,  knowing  that  all  things  were  now  accomplished, 
that  the  Scripture  might  be  fulfilled,  Jesus  said,  I  thirst. 
And  when  Jesus  had  received  the  vinegar,  he  said,  It 
is  finished  !  and  he  bowed  his  head  and  gave  up  the 
ghost."  t 

Did  David  know  whilst  he  was  composing  this  69tli 
Psalm  upon  Shoshannim,  and  the  22d  upon  Ajeleth, 
the  prophetical  sense  of  each  one  of  these  words;  of 
these  hands  and  feet  pierced,  of  this  gal)  poured  out,  of 
this  vinegar,  of  these  garments  divided,  of  this  robe 
taken  by  lot,  of  this  mocking  multitude,  wagging  the 
head  and  shooting  out  the  lip  1  To  us  it  matters  little 
whether  he  understood  it  or  not ;  the  Floly  Spirit  at 
least  understood  it ;  and  David  was  speaking  by  the 
Spirit,  Jesus  tells  us.  The  heavens  and  the  earth 
must  pass  ;  but  there  is  not  in  this  book  a  jot  or  tittle 
that  can  remain  unaccomplished. J 

•  Psalm  y.xii.  16—18.  t  John  xix.  28—30.  t  John  x.  35. 


EXAMPLE    OF    CHRIST    AND    THE    AFOSTLES.  393 

Yet  there  is  something  still  more  striking,  if  it  be 
possible.  Jesus  Christ  rises  from  the  tomb  ;  he  has 
vanquished  death  ;  he  is  about  to  return  to  the  Father, 
to  resume  that  glory  which  he  had  with  the  Father,  be- 
fore the  world  was.  Follow  him  then  in  these  rapid 
moments  which  he  yet  bestows  on  the  earth.  What 
words  are  to  fall  from  his  reanimated  lips?  They  are 
words  from  the  Holy  Scriptures.  Still  he  quotes  them  ; 
he  explains  them  ;  he  preaches  them  still.  See  him 
first  upon  the  road  to  Emmaus,  journeying  with  Cleopas 
and  his  friend  ;  afterwards  in  the  upper  chamber  ;  and 
still  later  upon  the  borders  of  the  lake.  What  does  he  ? 
he  expounds  the  sacred  books,  he  begins  at  Moses,  and 
continues  through  all  the  prophets  and  the  Psalms ; 
he  shows  them  what  has  been  said  concerning  himself, 
in  all  the  Scriptures;  he  opens  their  understandings, 
that  they  may  comprehend  ;  he  makes  their  hearts  burn 
while  he  opens  the  Scriptures.* 

But  we  have  not  finished.  All  these  quotations  show 
us  what  the  Holy  Bible  was  to  Him  in  whom  are 
hidden  all  the  treasures  of  wisdom  and  knowledge. f  and 
by  whom  all  things  consist.;]:  But  let  us  hear  again, 
upon  the  letter  of  the  Scriptures,  t^'o  declarations  and 
one  final  example  of  our  Lord. 

"  It  is  easier,  says  he,  for  heaven  and  earth  to  pass 
away,  than  for  one  tittle  [icFoaUx)  of  the  law  to  fail;"*^. 
and,  by  the  law,  Jesus  Christ  understood  the  body  of 
the  Scriptures,  and,  even  more  particularly  the  book  of 
the  Psalms.  i[ 

What  v,-ord  could  we  imagine,  which  should  express 
with  more  precision  and  more  force,  the  principle  that 

•  Luke  xxiv.  27—44.  t  Col.  ii.  3.  i  Col  i.  17. 

§  Luke  xvi.  17.  II  John  x.  34  ;  xii.  34. 


394  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

we  defend,  I  mean,  the  authority,  the  entire  theopneusty, 
and  the  permanence,  of  all  the  parts  and  of  the  very 
letter  of  the  Scriptures?  Students  of  the  word  of  God, 
behold  the  theology  of  your  Master.  Be  then  theolo- 
jTians  after  his  pattern ;  have  the  same  Bible  with  the 
Son  of  God  ! 

But  let  us  hear  yet  another  declaration.  Our  Lord 
made  it  in  his  Sermon  on  the  Mount. 

"  Until  heaven  and  earth  pass  away,  not  one  jot  or 
tittle  shall  pass  frojn  the  Law*  All  the  words  of  the 
Scriptures^  even  to  the  smallest  letter  and  the  smallest 
part  of  a  letter,  are  then,  equivalent  to  the  words  of 
Jesus  Christ  ;  for  he  has  also  said;  The  heavens  and 
the  earth  shall  one  day  pass  away,  but  my  words  shall 
not  pass.f 

Men  who  combat  these  doctrines,  demand  of  us  if  we 
dare  pretend  that  the  Holy  Scriptures  are  a  law  of  God, 
even  in  its  words,  as  a  hyssop  or  an  oak  is  a  work  of 
God,  even  to  its  leaves.  We  rep]}'-,  with  all  the  Fa- 
thers of  the  Church ;  Yes ;  or  rather,  Jesus  Christ, 
our  Savior  and  our  Master,  lifts  his  hands  towards  hea- 
ven, and  replies  :  Yes,  even  in  its  "  words ;  even  to 
(/u)T«  fi',  7]  a\u  y.sga[a)  a  single  iota,  or  a  single  fragment 
of  a  letter!" 

But,  after  these  two  declarations,  let  us  finally  con- 
sider a  last  example  of  our  Lord,  which  we  have  not 
yet  adduced. 

It  is  still  Jesus  Christ  who  is  going  to  quote  the 
Scriptures;  but  in  chiiming,  for  their  least  word,  such 
on  authority,  that  we  are  obliged  to  rank  him  in  the 
number  of  the  most  ardent  partisans  of  the  verbal  inspi- 
ration, ami  that  u-e  think,  that  in  searching  through  the 

•  Malt.  V.  18.  t  Luke  x.xi.  33. 


EXAMPLE   OF   CHRIST  AND   THE   APOSTLES.  395 

writings  of  our  most  rigidly  orthodox  divines,  there  can- 
not be  found  the  example  of  respect  for  the  letter  of  the 
Scriptures  and  for  the  plentitude  of  their  theopneusty 
carried  farther. 

It  was  on  a  day  in  winter,  as  Jesus  was  walking  in 
the  temple  under  the  colonnade  of  the  eastern  portico; 
the  Jews  surrounded  him ;  and  he  then  said  to  them  ;* 
"  I  give  eternal  life  to  my  sheep  ;  they  shall  never  per- 
ish :  no  one  shall  pluck  them  out  of  my  hand  ;  I  and 
the  Father  are  one."  They  were  astonished  at  such 
language  ;  but  he  became  still  more  staitling,  until 
finally  the  Jews,  crying  out  against  the  blasphemy, 
brought  stones  to  kill  him,  and  said  to  him  :  "  we  stone 
thee,  because  being  man,  thou  makest  thyself  God."t 

We  would  now  call  particular  attention  to  the  differ- 
ent features  of  the  answer  of  Jesus  Christ.  He  is 
about  to  quote  one  word  taken  from  a  hymn,  and  he  is 
about  to  found  all  his  doctrine  on  this  single  word;  for 
"he  made  himself  equal  with  God,"  says  John  in  ano- 
ther place  (v.  18  )  In  order  to  sustain  the  sublimest 
and  most  mysterious  of  his  doctrines,  to  legitimate  his  most 
unheard-of  pretension,  he  supports  himself  on  a  word 
of  the  Psalm  Ixxxii.  But,  remark  it  well  ;  before  pro- 
nouncing this  word,  he  is  careful  to  interrupt  himself; 
he  pauses  in  a  solemn  parenthesis,  and  exclaims  with 
authority:  '•'  and  the  Scripture  cannot  he  hrokcii^  (x«* 
Civ  di)i'uTu(  Xudritixl  tj  youcprj  \) 

Has  this  been  sufficiently  regarded  ?  Not  only  is 
the  Lord's  argument  here  entirely  founded  upon  the 
use  made  of  a  single  word  by  the  Psalmist ;  and  not 
only  is  he  going  to  erect  on  this  single  term,  the  most 
astounding  of  his  doctrines;   but  also,  in  quoting  thus 

•  John  X.  27.  t  Johu  x.  27,  et.  seq. 


396  SCRIPTURAL   PROOF. 

the  book  of  Psalms,  to  make  us  better  comprehend,  that 
in  his  view,  the  book  is  entirely  a  writing  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  in  which  each  word  must  serve  to  us  as  a  law, 
Jesus  calls  it  by  the  name  of  law,  and  he  says  to  the 
Jews :  "  Is  it  not  written  in  your  law,  I  have  said  ye 
are  gods  ?"  These  words  are  placed  in  the  middle  of  a 
song  ;  they  might  seem  to  have  escaped  from  the  unre- 
flecting fervor  of  the  prophet  Asaph,  or  from  the  ardent 
strain  of  his  poetry.  And  if  the  plenary  inspiration  of 
all  that  is  icritten  were  not  admitted,  we  should  be 
tempted  to  tax  them  with  indiscretion,  since  the  impru- 
dent use  which  the  Psalmist  made  of  them,  might  have 
led  the  people  to  practises,  condemned  in  other  parts  of 
the  word  of  God.  and  to  idolatrous  thoughts.  Why 
then,  yet  once  more,  was  there  not  found  there,  in  Solo- 
mon's porch,  some  rationalist  scribe  of  the  Jewish  uni- 
versities, to  say  to  him:  "Lord,  you  cannot  justify 
yourself  by  this  expression.  The  use  which  Asaph 
made  of  it,  may  have  been  neither  deliberate  nor  proper. 
Although  inspired  in  the  thoughts  of  his  piety,  he  cer- 
tainly did  not  \veigh  his  smallest  word,  with  a  minute 
forethought  of  the  use  which  might  be  made  of  them  a 
thousand  j^ears  afterwards.  It  would  then  be  imprudent 
to  pretend  to  insist  on  them."  But  now,  observe  how 
our  Lord  anticipates  the  profane  temerity  of  such  an 
evasion.  Behold  him  ;  he  recollects  himself  with  so- 
lemnity :  he  had  ju.st  pronounced,  concerning  himself, 
words  which  would  be  blasphemous  in  the  mouth  of  an 
archangel :  '•  I  and  the  Father  are  one  ;"  but  he  inter- 
rupts himself,  and  as  soon  as  he  has  said :  '•  Is  it  not 
written  in  your  law,  I  have  said,  ye  are  gods;"  he 
pauses,  and  fixing  his  eyes  authoritatively  upon  the 
doctors  who  surround  him,  he  exclaims;    "And  the 


EXAMPLE   OF   CHRIST   AND   THE   APOSTLES.  397 

ScRirpjRE  CANNOT  BE  BROKEN."  As  if  he  had  said : 
''  Beware  !  there  is  not  in  the  sacred  books,  a  single 
word  which  can  be  reproved,  nor  one  single  word 
which  can  be  neglected.  That  which  I  quote  to  you 
from  *he  Ixxxii  Psalm,  is  traced  by  the  hand  which 
made  the  heavens.  If  then  he  would  give  the  name  of 
gods  to  men,  inasmuch  as  they  are  christs,  (anointed) 
and  types  of  the  true  Christ,  of  the  anointed,  and  in 
taking  care  at  the  same  time  immediately  to  suggest, 
"  that  they  died  as  men  ;"  how  much  more  appropriate 
is  this  name  to  me  •'  the  Father  of  eternity,*  the  Im- 
nanuel,  the  man-God,  the  Messiah,  who  do  the  works 

f  my  Father,  and  whom  the  Father  hath  marked  with 

is  seal !" 
We  will  then  ask  here  of  every  serious  reader,  (and 
our  argument,  it  should  be  well  observed,  is  entirely  in- 
iependent  of  the  orthodox  or  of  the  Socinian  meaning 
vhich  may  be  given  to  these  words  of  Jesus  Christ ;) 
.^e  will  ask  ;  is  it  possible  to  admit  that  the  being  who 
makes  such  a  use  of  the  Scriptures,  does  not  believe 

IN  their    PLENARY,    VERBAL     INSPIRATION  ?       And    if    he 

had  believed  that  the  words  of  the  Bible  had  been 
ieft  to  the  free  choice  and  to  the  pious  fantasies  of  the 
sacred  writers,  would  he  ever  have  broached  the  idea 
of  founding  such  arguments  upon  the  employment  of 
Buch  a  word  ?  The  Lord  Jesus,  our  Savior  and  our 
Judge,  believed  then  in  the  most  complete  inspiration  of 
the  Scriptures  ;  and,  for  him,  the  first  rule  of  all  herme- 
neutics,  and  the  beginning  of  all  exegesis,  was  this  sim- 
ple maxim,  applied  to  the  least  expressions  of  the  writ* 
en  word  :  "  and  the  Scripture  cannot  be  broken." 
Let  the  Prince  of  life,  the  light  of  the  world,  then 

•  Isa.  ix.  6;  vii.  14;  John  vi.  27. 

34 


398  SCRIPTURAL    PROOF. 

rank  us  all  in  his  school !     What  he  has  believed,  1 
us  receive.      What  he  has  respected,  let  us  respec 
This  book,  to  all  the  words  of  which  he  has  submitte 
his  heart  as  a  Savior,  and  all  the  thoughts  of  his  h-   - 
humanity,  let  us  press  it  to  our  diseased  hearts,  and 
mit  to  it  all  the  thoughts  of  our  fallen  humanity. 
us  seek  God  there  in  the  least  passages  ;  let  us  pluL 
into  it  every  day  all  the  roots  of  our  being,  as  the  tr? 
planted  near  the  running  waters,  which  gives  its  fru 
in  its  season,  and  whose  leaf  never  fades.     Let  us  bf 
in  a  word,  as  the  righteous  man  of  the  Psalms,  "  vh. 
takes  his  delight  in  the  law  of  the  Lord,  so  that  n 
meditates  therein  day  and   night."     Then   the   Holy 
Spirit,  who  wrote  it,  word  after  word,  in  his  eternal 
book,  will  write  it  also,  with  his  almighty  fingers,  upon 
the  table  of  our  hearts  ;  and  will  there  make  us  com- 
prehend with  efficacy  these  words  of  God  our  Savior  : 
"  Be  thou  healed,  and  be  thou  saved ;  go,  son,  thy  sins 
are  forgiven  thee ;  thy  faith  hath  saved  thee ;  go  ir 
peace      All  things  are  possible  to  him  that  believeth.' 


CHAPTER  VII. 

CONCLUSION. 

But  we  must  conclude. 
,;  From  all  that  we  have  read,  it  results  that  there  are  iu 
^  {\^  world  only  two  schools,  or  but  two  religions :  that 
;_,  irkich  places  the  Bible  above  every  thing ;  and  that 
.  which  places  something  above  the  Bible.  The  first  was 
I  evidently  that  of  Jesus  Christ ;  the  second  is  that  of  the 
,  rationalists  of  all  denominations  and  of  all  ages. 

The  motto  of  the  first  is  this  ;  all  the  written  word  is 
inspired  of  God,  even  to  a  single  iota  or  tittle ;  the  Scrip- 
I  tures  cannot  be  broken. 

The  device  of  the  second  is  this :  there  are  human 
judges  of  the  word  of  God. 

Instead  of  placing  the  Bible  above  every  thing,  it  is 
on  the  contrary,  either  science  or  reason,  or  human  tra- 
dition, or  some  new  inspiration,  that  it  places  above  the 
Bible.  Thence,  all  the  rationalists ;  and  thence  all  their 
false  religions. 

They  correct  the  word  of  God,  or  they  complete  it ; 
they  contradict  it,  or  they  interdict  it ;  they  teach  their 
pupils  to  read  it  with  irreverence,  or  they  prohibit  the 
reading  of  it. 

The  rationalists,  for  instance,  who  now  profess  Judaism, 
place  above  the  Bible,  if  not  their  own  reason,  at  least 
that  of  the  lid.  Illd.  IVth.  Vlh.  and  Vlth.  centuries; 
that  is  the  human  traditions  of  their  Targums.  the  Mishna 
and  the  Gemara  of  thcii-  two  enormous  Talmnds.     That 


400  CONCLUSION. 

is  their  Alcoran  ;  they  liave  stifled  the  law  and  the  pro- 
phets beneath  its  enormous  weight. 

The  rationalists  who  profess  the  religion  of  Rom»* 
will  in  their  turn,  place  above  the  Bible,  not  their  owr 
reason,  but,  first ;  the  reason  of  the  Yllth,  Vlllth 
IXth,  Xth,  Xlth,  Xllth  and  Xlllth  centuries,  which 
they  call  tradition  ;  (that  is,  the  reason  of  Dyonisius  the 
Less,  of  Hincmar,  of  Radbert,  of  Lanfranck,  of  Damas- 
cenus,  of  Anastasius  the  Librarian,  of  Burkardt,  of  Ives 
of  Chartres,  of  Gratian,  of  Isidorus  the  Merchant ;)  and 
then  ;  that  of  a  priest,  ordinarily  Italian,  whom  they  call 
Pope^  and  whom  they  declare  infallible  Ijl  the  definition 
of  matters  of  faith*  Does  the  Bible  require  us  lo 
worship  the  virgin,  to  serve  the  angels,  to  purchase  par- 
dons, to  worship  images,  to  confess  to  priests,  to  refrain 
from  marriage,  to  refuse  meats,  to  pray  in  unknown 
tongues,  to  forbid  the  Scriptures  to  the  people  ;t  to  have 
a  sovereign  Pontiff?  And  when  they  speak  of  a  future 
Rome,  J  is  it  otherwise  (all  the  first  Fathers  of  the  Church 
are  agreed  on  this  point,)^  than  in  designating  it  as  the 

*  It  is  the  doctrine  of  the  Ultramontanes,  maintained  both  by  popes, 
(Pascal,  Pius,  Leo.  Pelagius,  Boniface,  Gregory.)  and  by  councils.  Bellar- 
min,  Duval  and  Arsdekin  assure  us  that  it  is  the  sentiment  of  all  theolo- 
gians of  any  distinction.  Hsc  doctrina  communis  est  inter  onines  notsi 
theologos.    (Arsdekin,  Theol.,  vol.  I,  p.  118.     Antwerp,  1G82  ) 

t  Prohibemus  etiam,  ne  libros  Veteris  Testamenti  aut  Novi  In  ci  permit- 
tantur  habere  ;  nisi  forte  psalterium,  vel  breviarium  pro  divinis  offlciis.  aui 
horas  beatae  Mariae,  aliquis  ex  devotione  habere  velit.  Sed  ne  pr8emiss^ 
libros  habeant  in  vulgar!  translates,  arctissime  inhibemus.  (The  XlVtft 
canon  of  the  Council  of  Toulouse,  under  pope  Gregory  IX.  in  1229.  On 
cilia Labbaei.  t.  ii.,  part  1.  Paris,  1671.) 

X  2  Thess.  ii.  1  to  12;  Rev.  xiii.  1  to  8;  xviii.  1  to  24. 

§  St.  Jerome,  Exhortation  to  Marcella,  to  uiduce  her  to  emigrate  from 
Rome  to  Bethlehem  :  "  Read  John's  Revelation,  and  observe  what  is  «aid 

of  the  woman  in  scarlet,  ^c the  seven  hills,  ant'--  )  coming 

out  from  Babylon,  &c."  Tertulllan  ;  "  Sic  et  Babylon  apud  Johai.'  S  nos- 
trum romanse  urbis  figura  est,  &c."  (Adv.  Judceos.  Parisiis.  ^<.<.^ — St. 
Cbrysostom    (//««.  4;  in'Zepis.  ad.  Tkessal.,  c.  2;)  "Thai  whi'  i  n.nder- 


CONCLUSION.  401 

seat  of  the  Man  of  Sin,  as  the  centre  of  an  immense  apos- 
tacy ;  as  a  Babylon,  drunk  with  the  blood  of  the  saints 
and  of  the  witnesses  of  Jesus  Christ,  who  has  made  all 
the  nations  drink  of  the  wine  of  the  fury  of  her  fornica- 
tion ;  as  the  mother  of  the  fornicators  and  of  the  abomi- 
nations of  the  earth  ?  , 

The  rationalists  w-ho  profess  an  impure  protestantism, 
and  who  reject  the  doctrines  of  the  Reformation,  will 
place  above  the  Bible,  if  not  the  reason  of  Socinus  and 
of  Priestly,  of  Eichhorn  and  of  Paulus,  of  Strauss  and 
of  Hegel,  at  least  their  own.  There  is  a  mixture  of 
error,  they  will  say,  in  the  word  of  God.  They  try  it, 
they  correct  it ;  and  with  the  Bible  in  their  hands,  they 
will  tell  you :  No  divinity  in  Christ,  no  resurrection  of 
the  body,  no  Holy  Spirit,  no  devil,  no  demons,  no  hell, 
no  expiation  in  the  death  of  Jesus  Christ,  no  native  cor- 
ruption in  man,  no  eternity  of  punishment,  no  miracu- 
lous facts,  (what  do  I  say  1)  no  reality  in  Jesus  Christ ! 

The  rationalists  finally,  v^'ho  profess  mysticism  (the 
Illuminati,  the  Quakers,  the  Paracelcists,  the  Bourig- 
nonists,  the  Labadists,  the  Boehmists,)  will  put  above  the 
sacred  text  of  the  Scriptures,  their  hallucinations,  their 
internal  word,  their  revelations,  and  the  Christ  within. 
They  will  speak  with  disdain  of  the  letter,  of  the  literal 
sense  of  the  evangelical  facts,  of  the  man  Jesus,  or  of 
the  external  Christ  (as  they  style  him,)  of  the  cross  of 
Golgotha,  of  preaching,  of  worship,  of  the  sacraments. 
They  are  above  these  carnal  aids  !  Hence  their  aver- 
sion to  the  doctrines  of  the  judicial  justice  of  God,  of 
the  reality  of  sin,  of  the  divine  wrath  against  wicked- 
ness, of  grace,  of  election,  of  vicarious  atonement,  of 

ed  (i*  .  time,  he  says,)  the  manifestation  of  the  Man  of  Sin,  was  the  Ro- 
m8i.  ^pire."  7'ovr*  eariv  j^  apxriVoiiJialKii.  "Orap ipdrj  cs(^  fteoov  rdrt 
IKtlVOS  'iki- 

34* 


402  CONCLUSION. 

the  imputed  righteousness  of  Christ,  of  future  punish- 
ment. 

Disciples  of  the  Savior,  hear  him  in  his  word,  there 
he  will  speak  to  you  ;  there  is  our  reason,  our  wisdom, 
our  inspiration;  there  our  sure  tradition;  there  is  the 
lamp  to  our  feet,  the  light  of  our  paths.  Sanctify  me 
by  thy  truth,  O  Lord;  "  thy  word  is  truth  !" 

Let  our  reason  then  employ  all  her  strength,  in  the 
sight  of  God,  first  to  recognise  that  the  Scriptures  are 
from  him,  and  then  to  study  them.  Let  her  bow  more 
intensely  every  day,  over  their  divine  oracles,  to  correct 
herself  by  them,  not  to  correct  them  by  her ;  to  seek 
there  the  meaning  of  God,  not  to  put  upon  them  her 
own  ;  to  present  herself  before  their  holy  word  as  a 
respectful  servant,  attentive,  tender,  docile,  and  not  as  a 
noisy  and  foolish  sybil.  Let  her  daily  prayer,  during 
the  darkness  which  surrounds  her,  be  constantly  that  of 
that  child  of  the  tabernacle:  "  Speak,  speak,  Lord  ;  thy 
servant  heareth  !" — "  The  law  of  the  Lord  is  perfect ; 
the  words  of  the  Lord  are  pure  words ;  it  is  silver  puri- 
fied in  the  furnace,  and  seven  times  refined."* 

And  on  the  other  hand,  let  us  seek  the  Holy  Spirit ; 
let  us  be  baptized  with  the  Spirit,  "  let  us  be  anointed  of 
the  Holy  One;"  it  is  the  Spirit  alone  who  will  guide 
us  into  all  the  truth  of  the  Scriptures,  who  will  shed 
abroad  by  them  the  love  of  God  in  our  hearts,  and  who 
will  witness  with  our  spirits  that  we  are  the  sons  of 
God,  by  applying  its  promises  to  us,  and  giving  us  from 
them  the  pledge  of  the  promised  inheritance  and  the 
earnest  of  his  adoption.  In  vain,  without  this  Spirit, 
should  we  carry  this  Scripture  in  our  hands  for  eighteerv 
hundred  years,  as  do  still  the  Jews  ;  we  should  not  there 

•  P8.  xli.  6. 


CONCLUSION. 


403 


comprehend  the  things  of  the  Spirit  of  God ;  ''  they 
would  be  to  us  folly  ;  because  the  natural  man  receiveth 
them  not,  nor  indeed  can,  for  they  are  spiritually  dis- 
cerned."— But  at  the  same  time,  in  distinguishing  always 
the  spirit  from  the  letter,  let  us  take  care  never  to  sepa- 
rate them.  Let  it  be  always  before  the  word,  in  the 
word,  and  by  the  word,  that  we  seek  this  divine  Spirit. 
It  is  by  this  word  he  acts  ;  by  it  he  enlightens  and 
affects  the  heart ;  by  it  he  casts  down,  and  by  it  raises 
up.  His  constant  work  is  to  make  our  soul  comprehend 
it,  to  apply  it  to  our  soul,  to  make  our  soul  love  it.       >^ 

The  Bible  is  then  from  God,  in  all  its  parts. 

It  is  indeed  certain  that  we  shall  still  meet  many  pas- 
sages there,  whose  use  and  whose  beauty  are  concealed 
from  us ;  but  the  light  of  the  last  day  like  the  sudden 
blaze  of  a  torch  beaming  on  the  long-concealed  depths 
of  a  crystaline  cavern,  will  in  an  instant  make  their 
splendors  flash  out.  The  rising  of  the  day  of  Jesus 
Christ,  inundating  all  things  in  its  glory,  will  penetrate 
all  the  Scriptures  with  its  light ;  and  there  revealing  to 
us  on  every  side,  diamonds  never  before  perceived,  will 
make  them  blaze  resplendent  with  a  thousand  fires. 
Then  the  beauty,  the  wisdom,  the  proportion,  and  the 
harmony  of  all  their  revelations  will  be  manifest ;  and 
this  view  shall  fill  the  chosen  of  God  with  enraptured' 
admiration,  with  tenderness  incessantly  renewed,  and 
with  a  joy  that  cannot  mislead. 

The  history  of  the  past  should  make  us  already  an- 
ticipate that  of  the  future  ;  and  we  can  judge  by  facts 
already  accomplished,  of  the  splendor  of  the  light  which 
is  to  be  poured  for  us  upon  the  Scriptures,  at  the  second 
coming  of  Christ. 

See  already  what  vivid  light  was  shed  upon  all  parts 


404  CONCLUSION. 

of  the  Old  Testament  at  the  first  appearing  of  the  &on 
of  God ;  and  conjecture  from  this  single  fact,  what  n 
be  the  splendor  of  the  two  Testaments,  at  his  sec- 
coming.     Then  the  plan  of  God  will  be  complet 
then  our  Lord  and  our  King,  more  glorious  than 
sons  of  men,  shall  be  revealed  from  heaven,  riding  pi 
perously  because  of  truth,  justice  and  meekness ;  th 
his  light  shall  fill  the  hearts  of  his  redeemed  ;  and  tj 
imposing  grandeur  of  the  work  of  redemption  will  I 
manifested  in  all  its  glory  to  the  view  of  the  children  o^ 
God. 

See  already  how  many  chapters  of  the  Scriptures,  i) 
the  age  of  Jeremiah,  or  later,  in  the  long  reign  of  ih 
Maccabees,  and  during  the  existence  of  the  second  tern 
pie,  from  Malachi  even  to  John  the  Baptist ;  see,  we 
say,  how  many  chapters  of  the  Scriptures,  which  now 
shine  to  us  in  heavenly  splendor,  must  then  have  ap- 
peared insignificant,  and  dull  to  the  eyes  of  the  ra- 
tionalists of  the  ancient  synagogue.  How  puerile,  vul- 
gar, unmeaning,  useless  must  they  have  found  many  of 
those  verses  and  chapters,  which  now  nourish  our  faith, 
which  fill  us  with  admiration  for  the  majestic  unity  of 
the  Scriptures,  which  cause  our  tears  to  How,  and  which 
have  already  led  so  many  weary  and  heavy-laden  souls 
rto  the  feet  of  Jesus  Christ !  What  did  they  use  to  say 
of  the  53d  chapter  of  Isaiah?  Without  doubt,  with  the 
Ethiopian  servant  of  Queen  Candace :  "  How  shall  I 
understand,  unless  some  one  guide  me  ?  Of  whom 
speaks  the  prophet ;  of  himself  or  of  some  other  ?" 
What  could  be  the  use  of  that  history  of  Melchizedeck  ? 
Why  those  long  details  about  the  Tabernacle,  the  gar- 
ments of  Aaron,  clean  and  unclean  beasts,  worship  and 
sacrifices  ?     What   could   these   words   mean  :    "  thou 


CONCLUSION.  405 

shalt  not  break  its  legs  ?"    What  meaning  could  there  be 

'•f  the  xxii,  Ixix,  and  many  other  Psalms :  "  My  God,  my 

'Sd,  why  hast  thou  forsaken  me  ?  they  have  pierced  my 

?tids  and  my  feet !"     Why  (they  must  have  thought.) 

/es  David  occupy  us  so  long,  in  his  songs,  with  the 

/dinary  details  of  his  adventurous  life  ?     When  too, 

Ma  they  divide  his  garments  and  cast  lots  upon  his  ves- 

^"f?ire  ?     What  do  these  words  mean  :  "  All  they  shake 

■■i^eir  heads  at  me,  he  trusted  in  the  Lord,  say  they  ;  let 

'&im  deliver  him,  since  he  takes  pleasure  in  him  ?" 

What  then  is  that  vinegar,  and  what  means  that  gall : 

^'  In  my  thirst,  they  gave  me  vinegar  ;  they  gave  me 

%all  for  my  drink  ?"     What  mean  these  exaggerated 

^nd  inexplicable  words  :  '•  I  have  not  hid  my  face  from 

shame  and  spitting.     They  smote  me  upon  the  cheek  ; 

they  have  ploughed  my  back  ?-"     And  what  did  the 

prophet  mean:    "Behold,  a  virgin    shall   conceive?" 

Who  again  is  this  "  King,  lowly  and  sitting  on  an  ass, 

and  upon  a  colt  the  foal  of  an  ass  ?     Zion  behold  thy 

God  ;  he  himself  shall  come  and  deliver  you."     What 

then  is  this  burial :    "  He  made  his  grave   with  the 

wicked,  and  with  the  rich  in  his  death  ?" 

How  strange  and  unworthy  of  the  Lord  must  all 
these  words,  and  so  many  similar  ones,  have  appeared 
to  the  presumptuous  scribes  of  those  remote  days  ! 
What  human  weakness,  they  must  have  said,  what  in- 
dividuality, what  occasionality !  (to  lend  these  ancient 
men  the  language  of  our  times.)  They  doubtless 
taught  then  in  the  academies,  learned  systems  and  long 
discussions  upon  the  situations  and  circumstances  of  the 
prophets  while  writing  such  details  ;  and  found  in  their 
words  nothing  but  the  vulgar  impression  of  the  merely 
personal  circumstances  which  had  affected  them. 


406  CONCLUSION. 

But  what  were  you  then  doing,  true  disciples  of  the 
word  of  life  ?  What  w-'ere  you  doing,  Hezekiah,  Dan- 
iel, Josiah,  Nehemiah,  Ezra,  our  brethren  in  the  same 
hope  and  in  the  same  faith  ;  and  you  too,  holy  women 
who  trusted  in  God,  and  who  looked  for  the  consolation 
of  Israel  ?  Ah  !  you  bowed  reverently  over  all  these 
depths,  as  do  still  the  angels  of  light,  and  desiring  to 
fathom  to  the  bottom  ;  you  waited  !  Yes,  they  waited ! 
They  knew  that,  in  the  passage  most  insignificant  in 
their  eyes,  there  might  be,  as  a  Father  of  the  Chuich 
has  said  :  "  mountains  of  doctrine."  Wherefore,  as  St, 
Peter  says,  "  searching  what  or  what  manner  ot  time 
the  Spirit  of  Christ,  which  was  in  the  prophets  did  sig- 
nify when  it  testified  beforehand,  the  sufferings  of  Christ, 
and  the  glory  that  should  follow,"  they  did  not  doubt 
that,  thereafter,  when  time  and  events  should  have 
passed  their  hand  over  this  sympathetic  ink,  there 
would  start  out  from  them,  astounding  pages,  all  stamp- 
ed with  divinity,  and  all  full  of  the  gospel !  The  day  was 
to  come,  after  the  first  appearing  of  the  Messiah,  when 
the  least  in  the  kingdom  of  God  should  be  greater  than 
the  greatest  of  the  prophets  ;  and  that  day  has  come. 
But  we  know  too,  ourselves,  that  the  day  is  yet  to  come, 
after  his  second  appearing,  when  the  least  of  the  re- 
'deemed  shall  be  greater  in  knowledge  than  were  the 
Augustines,  the  Calvins,  the  Edwards,  the  Pascals,  the 
Leightons  ;  for  then  the  ears  of  the  children  shall  hear, 
and  their  eyes  shall  see  things,  which  even  the  apos- 
tles "  desired  to  see,  and  saw  not ;  to  hear,  and,  heard 
not." 

What  then  the  doctors,  the  prophets,  and  the  saints 
did  with  the  passages  to  them  yet  obscure,  and  now  lu- 
minous to  us,  we  will  do  to  those  pas&nges  which  are 


CONCLUSION.  407 

obscure  to  us,  but  which  shall  quickly  become  lumi- 
nous to  the  heirs  of  life,  when  all  the  prophecies  shall 
be  accomplished,  and  Jesus  Christ  shall  appear  in  the 
clouds,  in  the  last  Epiphany  of  his  glorious  coming. 

With  what  glory,  as  soon  as  they  were  comprehend- 
ed, have  we  seen  shine  forth,  so  many  passages,  so 
many  psalms,  so  many  prophecies,  so  many  types,  so 
many  descriptions,  whose  profound  beauty  had  not  be- 
fore been  perceived  !  What  evangelical  truth  has  come 
forth  from  them !  what  appeals  to  the  conscience ! 
what  an  unfolding  of  redeeming  love  !  Let  us  then 
wait  in  regard  to  analogous  passages,  even  more  glo- 
rious, for  that  day  when  our  Master  shall  again  come 
down  from  Heaven  ;  for,  says  St.  Ireneus,  "  there  are 
difficulties  in  the  Scriptures,  which,  by  the  grace  of 
God,  we  can  now  resolve,  but  there  are  others  which 
we  leave  to  him,  not  only  for  this  age,  but  for  the  next, 
in  order  that  God  may  perpetually  be  teaching,  and 
that  perpetually,  man  may  thus  be  learning  of  God,  the 
things  which  pertain  to  God."* 

If  the  lights  of  grace  have  dimmed  those  of  nature, 
how  in  their  turn  will  the  lights  of  glory  throw  pale- 
ness on  those  of  grace  !  How  many  stars  of  the  first 
magnitude,  still  invisible,  will  be  enkindled  at  the  ap- 
proach of  that  great  day,  in  the  firmament  of  the  Scrip- 
tures'? And  when,  finally,  it  shall  be  fully  revealed  to 
the  redeemed  world  without  a  veil,  Avhat  harmonies, 
what  celestial  tints,  what  new  glories,  what  unantici- 
pated splendors,  shall  be  manifested  to  the  heirs  of  eter- 
nal life  ! 

Then,  we  shall  see  the  meaning  of  so  many  prophe- 

*  Iieneus  adv.  hngreb.,  lib  ii.,  c.  47.     Iva  b  Oiog  SidadKv,  avQpMuoi  6i  dti 


408  CONCLUSION. 

cies,  of  so  many  facts,  and  of  so  many  instructions, 
whose  divinity  as  yet,  is  revealed  only  by  detached  fea- 
tures, but  whose  evangelical  beauty  will  then  shine  on 
every  side.  Then  we  shall  know  all  the  meaning  of  those 
parables,  already  so  impressive,  of  the  Fig-tree,  of  the 
Master  returning  from  a  far  country,  of  the  Bride  and 
Bridegroom,  of  the  Net  drawn  on  the  shore  of  eternity, 
of  Lazarus,  of  the  Invited,  of  the  Talents,  of  the  Hus- 
bandman, of  the  Virgins,  of  the  Marriage-Feast.  Then 
we  shall  know  all  the  glory  of  words  like  these  :  "  The 
Lord  said  to  my  Lord,  sit  thou  on  my  right  hand,  until 
I  make  thy  foes  thy  footstool ;"  "  Thy  people.  Lord, 
shall  be  a  willing  people,  in  the  day  when  thou  shalt 
gather  thine  army  with  holy  pomp."  "The  dew  of 
thy  youth  shall  be  from  the  womb  of  the  morning." 
"  He  shall  tread  upon  kings  in  his  wrath.  He  shall 
destroy  the  head  over  a  great  country."  "  He  shall 
drink  of  the  water-brook  by  the  way  ;  therefore  shall 
he  lift  up  the  head  on  high  !" 

Then  too,  shalt  thou  manifest  thyself  to  our  view  in 
all  thy  glory,  O,  Jesus  Christ,  Savior,  consoler,  friend 
of  the  miserable,  our  Lord  and  our  God !  thou  that 
hast  tasted  death,  but  who  art  He  that  liveth  for  ever 
and  ever  !  Then  all  the  science  of  heaven  will  be  thy- 
self! Thou  wast  always  all  the  science  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  who  descended  from  Heaven.  Thou  wast  al- 
ways that  of  the  Scriptures  ;  for  "  the  testimony  of  Je- 
sus is  the  spirit  of  prophecy."*  Thou  art  already  all 
the  life  of  the  saints ;  "  their  life  eternal  is,  to  know 
thee  !"     "  O,  thanks  to  God  for  his  unspeakable  gift ! 

Could  the  celebrated  traveler  who  first  brought  to 
us  from  Constantinople,  the  only  horse-chesnut  which 

'  Rev.  xix.  10. 


OONCLUSKPi.  409 

h«u  yK  seen  our  Western  world,  and  who  planted  it, 
it  is  said,  in  the  court-yard  of  his  house ;  could  he  have 
told  what  he  held  in  the  palm  of  his  hand,  and  what 
was  to  spring  from  it  ?  The  infinite  in  the  finite  !  in- 
numerable forests,  in  a  humble  fruit,  and  under  its  in- 
significant shell ;  trees  by  thousands,  decorating  with 
their  majestic  foliage  and  their  clustered  blossoms  our 
gardens  and  our  fields  :  covering  with  their  thick  shade 
the  squares,  the  terraces  and  the  avenues  of  our  cities  ; 
our  people  celebrating  their  national  festivals  beneath 
their  outspread  branches  ;  our  western  kings,  in  our 
capitals  reviewing  their  armies  beneath  their  large 
bowers  ;  our  children  playing  at  their  feet,  and  the 
sparrow  of  our  houses  seeking  his  food  in  their  branches; 
whilst  each  one  of  these  trees  will  itself  produce,  from 
year  to  year,  millions  of  fruits  exactly  similar  to  that 
from  which  it  sprang,  and  bearing  likewise,  each  one 
in  its  bosom,  the  dormant  germ  of  thousands  of  forests, 
to  thousands  of  generations  ! 

Thus  the  Christian  traveler  arrivinof  from  the  mili- 
*ant  church,  at  his  celestial  country,  and  the  city  of  his 
God,  the  liousp  of  his  father,  with  one  of  the  thousand 
nassagf'S  of  the  Holy  Bible  in  his  hands,  knows  that  he 
hears  thither  the  infinite  in  the  finite,  a  germ  of  God, 
the  developments  and  the  glory  of  which  he  can  already, 
without  doubt,  faintly  perceive,  but  the  whole  of  whose 
grandeur  he  cannot  yet  tell.  It  is,  perhaps,  the  least 
of  all  seeds  ;  but  he  knows  that  from  it  is  to  spring  a 
great  tree,  an  eternal  tree,  under  the  branches  of  which 
the  heavenly  inhabitants  will  recline.  In  many  of 
llit-'Se  p;issages  of  his  Savior,  he  has  perhaps  not  yet 
se^n  even  the  germ,  under  their  rude  shell  ;  but  he 
knows  too,  that,  once  admitted  into  the  JerusHlem  above, 
35 


410  CONCLUSION. 

under  the  beams  of  the  Sun  of  Righteousness,  he  shall 
see  radiate,  in  these  words  of  the  eternal  wisdom,  by 
that  light  of  which  the  Lamb  is  the  glorious  torch, 
splendors  hitherto  latent,  and  still  covered  by  their  first 
envelope.  Then,  in  an  ineffable  tenderness  of  gratitude 
and  bliss,  he  shall  discover  agreements,  harmonies, 
glories  of  which  he  had  here  below,  only  suspicions,  or 
at  least,  a  respectful  expectation.  Prepared  before  the 
foundation  of  the  world  in  the  eternal  counsels  of  God, 
and  deposited  as  germs  in  his  Word  of  Life,  they  shall 
burst  forth  under  that  new  heaven,  and  for  that  new 
earth,  wherein  righteousness  shall  dwell. 

All  the  written  word  is  then  inspired  of  God.  "  Op  a 
thou  mine  eyes,  O  Lord,  that  I  may  see  wondroiS 
things  out  of  thy  law!" 


r^  n  /  irv 


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Princeton  Theological  Seminary-Speer  Library 


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